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It is disturbing to find so many people
that fail to believe God answers prayer.Several top “authors” and so-called “professionals” being interviewed on
TV lately, have claimed that prayer is a great therapy (as an end in
itself).You never hear them mention
God.It is sad that prayer has been
diminished to the status of going to the park to watch the birds.Prayer is not effective because it is a good
therapy.Prayer is effective because
there is an omnipotent (all powerful) God up in heaven that hears and answers
prayer!
Answered prayer can only happen
by a miracle of God.A “Miracle” is
defined in the Random House College Dictionary as “an event in the physical
world that surpasses all known human or natural powers and is ascribed to a
divine or supernatural cause."In
other words, GOD DID IT!Everything God
does then is a miracle because His power is divine, not human or natural.When we pray, we are petitioning the Creator
of the universe for a miracle.If God
decides to grant our request (s), it can be nothing less than a divine miracle
performed by an Almighty God.
Prayer is not to be taken lightly
because God just may give you what you ask.I remember an older country song by Garth Brooks, “I thank God for
unanswered prayer."He had been
praying, as a youngster, for God to give him a certain girl to be his
wife.God didn’t answer his
request.He sees this same woman many
years later and then thanks God that his prayers were never answered!So be careful what you pray!!!Let’s move on.
Jesus never preached an all night
sermon, but he prayed all night!Luke
6:12 says concerning Jesus “He went out into a mountain to pray, and CONTINUED
ALL NIGHT IN PRAYER to God.”Have you
ever started praying and just couldn’t stop?, or started studying your Bible
and simply couldn’t put it down?The
Bible says Jesus “continued."He
simply started praying and kept on praying until His heart was content.He was caught up in His fellowship with the
Father.We should get caught up too!
Daniel was also a man of
prayer!“...he went into his house; and
his windows being open in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he KNEELED UPON HIS
KNEES THREE TIMES A DAY, AND PRAYED, and GAVE THANKS before his God, AS HE DID
AFORETIME” (Daniel 6:10).Daniel had a
prayer life.He was about 80 years old
now and kept his windows open toward Jerusalem (about 500 miles away) because
that’s where his heart was.Jerusalem
was his home town.He had been taken
into Babylonian captivity as a young lad and longed to be back with his own
people again, in the city of his God.We
too, are pilgrims passing through this old dark world, and we should open the
windows of our heart in prayer towards heaven (home).Daniel prayed morning, evening and afternoon!
“Elijah was A MAN SUBJECT TO LIKE
PASSIONS AS WE ARE, and HE PRAYED EARNESTLY THAT IT MIGHT NOT RAIN: and IT
RAINED NOT on the earth by the space of three years and six months” (James
5:17).What a wonderful truth! Elijah
was just a plain, common, everyday human being just like you and me; yet he
obtained an answer to his prayer for something VERY BIG!That’s exactly why God is telling us about
it, so we will be encouraged to do the same.Even more wonderful is that God is telling us this in relation to
physical illnesses and healing.“...PRAY
ONE FOR ANOTHER, THAT YE MAY BE HEALED.The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous (saved) man availeth
(accomplishes) much. “Effectual” and “fervent” are words meaning
”energy."In other words, you
simply mean business and are sincerely pouring your heart out to God the best
you know how for a miracle.“...the
PRAYER OF FAITH SHALL SAVE THE SICK...” (James 5:15).We need to pray and have "just enough
faith" to simply keep praying!It
matters not where the faith comes from: a child, someone at church, mom, dad
(faith is faith).More than likely it
was the elders of the church who had the faith, but not necessarily.Jesus heals the sick (Matthew 8:16,17).He’s alive today!Go to Jesus in prayer now.
Now here’s a heart warming truth
in Acts 12:1-16.Wicked king Herod had
just killed James the Apostle “with the sword”, probably by beheading.Herod saw that “it pleased the Jews."
The Jews were a wicked, rebellious people and had hated Christ; they demanded
that the Roman government crucify Jesus, and they did!Steven was brutally murdered by the Jews in
Acts 7:54-60.So Jesus, Steven and James
had already been slain by the Jews.Herod now had Peter bound in prison and looked forward to killing
him.“...but PRAYER WAS MADE WITHOUT
CEASING of the church unto God for him” (Acts 12:5).Guess what?A miracle happened!God answered
their prayers and sent an angel to rescue Peter—divine power at work!After Peter was freed, the angel departed.
Now Peter comes to the house where everybody was still praying for him (vs.
12).He knocks on the door and Rhoda
asks who it is. When she heard Peter’s voice, she was so happy that she ran to
tell the others and forgot to open the door!They told Rhoda “THOU ART MAD." Your nuts!Crazy!Peter continued knocking!The
Bible says when all those who had been praying opened the door, “THEY WERE
ASTONISHED” (vs. 16).“Astonished” means
“to put out of wits."In other
words, their minds were blown!Here’s
the beauty of this truth— even though these many believers didn’t have much
faith, God still answered their prayers.They had so little faith that when God did answer their prayers, THEY
DIDN'T BELIEVE IT!Wow!What an encouragement to pray!Praying is faith in itself!If you have JUST ENOUGH FAITH to pray (ask)
God for something, that’s all the faith God requires.What a Savior!Do you have doubts?Did you know that the more doubt you have,
the greater is your faith—as long as you act on the faith!Faith is believing, in spite of the
doubts.No matter how much you may doubt
that God will answer your prayers, if you simply ask—that’s all the faith
needed for your prayer to be answered!Likewise, all the faith you need to become a born-again believer is JUST
ENOUGH.If you have “just enough” faith
to “call upon the name of the Lord” (Romans 10:13), you will be saved.“Call” means “to rely upon."Won’t you make that decision now to “rely”
100% upon Jesus Christ as your Savior?Admit to God you’re a sinner, deserving of hell.Ask Jesus to forgive your sins and take you
to heaven when you die.Let God work the
miracle of salvation in your soul now.
Welcome
to March 2012. It is your month for matches by divine strategy. You have been
selected by the LORD to play in His winning team. He has a winning strategy to
communicate to you; He will reveal
and release same to you as you prepare
to score determined goals.
TRANSMISSIONS
FROM MARCH 2012- 1 Sam 10:6-7
It is a match played by the jerseys of grace. The criterion for your selection is by grace. “Many are called but few are chosen” Matt
22:14.
The opposition in the field of play shall be dumb
founded by your tactics –It shall be most unassuming, yet your result will
baffle your world. Your winning strategy
shall not be after the order of the regular but the irregular and the unexpected!
As a man to be wondered at! In your naturalness shall
the supernatural break forth as the
LORD will use the common to project the uncommon.
March 2012 is not the month for mental negative preoccupation. Do not gloss over over the loss of
the previous matches but glide and glean on the opportunity presented to you through
the unleashing of the winning strategy.
The winning strategy shall not come by mental premeditation
but by a spur of sudden illumination
that would cause many to do as occasion secures them. The Spirit of the LORD
and the power from on high shall stake hold in the agenda -. “And
the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and
the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee, therefore also that holy thing
which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. Lk. 1:35
Illumination will birth manifestation in the winning
strategy. It shall not be by noise but a result that shall be noised abroad. You
will not be ‘stranded’. You will suddenly know what to do; Jehovah shall hover
over you by His Spirit “And the Spirit of the LORD will come up on
thee, and thou shalt prophesy with them and shalt be turned into another man.
And let it be, when these signs are come unto thee,
that thou do as occasion serve thee, for God is with thee. (1 Sam. 10:6-7”)
FURTHER ANALYSIS OF THE DIVINE
STRATEGY
It is a winning strategy in waning circumstances as you
will walk into result by inspiration.
What is ‘downloaded’ out there in the field of life shall be that which was ‘uploaded’ in there by
the spur of inspiration. Where you will be able to say by sudden insight. “For I
neither received of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of
Jesus Christ. Gal. 1:12
The winning strategy may ‘violate’ the common
observable trends yet the Lord will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in
the desert
The beast of the field shall honor me, the dragons and
the owls, because I give waters in the wilderness and rivers in the desert, to
give drink to my people my chosen. Remember ye not the former things, neither
consider the things of old.
Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring
forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and the
rivers in the desert. The beast of the field shall honour me, the dragons and
the owls: because I give waters in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert, to
give drink to my people, my chosen. .
Isa. 43:18-20.
The strategy shall be God-on-the-inside -working on
the outside . Phil. 2:13-14
Your articulate person shall savor an alignment with grace for the on the
spot assignment given the worth of
your remarkable equipment. It is a match
to be played to win.
Do not downplay the confrontational neither fear the
opposition…your articulation in positive vibration that will quench all the
manipulations and maneuverings of the opposition. “Above all, taking the shield of
faith, where with, ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
Above all, talking the shield of faith wherewith ye shall be ale to quench all
the fiery darts of the wicked. Eph. 6:16
It is a do-it-yourself
strategy. God is prepared to teach your hands
to war and your fingers to fight – Blessed be the LORD my strength, which
teacheth my hands to war, and my fingers to fight. Psm. 144:1
The jerseys you shall wear in the match of life shall
be that which impacts strength for conquest – Through God we shall do
valiantly: for he it is that shall tread down our enemies. Psm. 60:12
Although there may be few infringements, on either
side yet, that will not undercut your victory because the match is
predetermined to your favour. It is the victory that overcomes the world.
In March 2012, You will not play to the gallery but to
the glare of men. You will play to score
goals.
Good
news! the referee in the graceful match is the First Born of the matchless God
– the Captain of the Host of the LORD. What a joy to know you are playing on
His team at this season. Go out there and simply –win!
Congratulations.
Yours
in Him,
Pastor James Komolafe
Team
Strategy Network….… leading men and the Nations
to destiny through the weapons of discovery.
"And
I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of
David."--Isa. 55:3.
IF
THE faith of any of God's children needs reinforcement from the Word of God,
let him turn to the Lord's gracious invitation through the Prophet Isaiah to
partake of the bounties therein offered. The call is not to every man, but to a
certain class--"Ho every one that thirsteth!" (Vs. 1.)
There is a blessing for the thirsty soul. "Blessed are they which do
hunger and thirst after righteousness [Observe, not only after truth with a
curiosity interest, but after that righteousness which comes through a knowledge
of the truth]; for they shall be filled." The invitation is not to those
who are satisfied with sin, but to those who have learned the exceeding
sinfulness of sin, and [R1936 : page 29] whose
aspirations are toward God; who thirst after God and his truth and his
righteousness. It is to the class which the Psalmist describes as saying,
"As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after
thee, O God. My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: when shall I come
and appear before God?"--Psa. 42:1,2.
Are
you of this class? then hearken to the gracious invitation--"Ho, every
one that thirsteth [The call is to you], come ye to the waters [the
refreshing waters of divine truth]; and he that hath no money [None of us have
aught to offer as an equivalent for this priceless treasure: it is God's free
gift to all the thirsty]; come ye, buy and eat; yea come, buy wine and milk
without money and without price."
And
not only is the invitation thus liberal, but the Lord also condescends to
reason with those of this class who still have some hope of finding the
satisfying bread and water of life where already they have long looked for them
in vain. He graciously inquires, "Wherefore do ye spend money for that
which is not bread? and your labor for that which satisfieth not? Hearken
diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good [the "meat in due
season" provided by the Lord for the household of faith], and let your soul
delight itself in fatness. [The portion which the Lord supplies is a satisfying
portion; and the soul that is fed at his table is not lean.] Incline your ear,
and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live, and I will make an
everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David."
Turning
to Psalm 89:19-37we
find the sure mercies of David enumerated. David is introduced here as a
typical character representing Christ--primarily our Lord Jesus, but
subsequently the Christ complete--Head and body. In the meekness of his youth,
his loyalty to God, his faithfulness, zeal, courage and wise discretion,
David's character was a very beautiful type of the beloved One, to whom God
referred when he said, "I have laid help upon one that is mighty; I have
exalted one chosen out of the people. I have found David my servant; with my
holy oil have I anointed him."
Our
Lord Jesus is the mighty One upon whom the help of the world is laid. He
is the great deliverer, but it has pleased God also to associate with him in
this great work the Church of the Gospel age, the elect "little
flock," whose names are written in heaven. These, all chosen out of the
people, constitute that one body, which, with Christ Jesus their Head, shall
bless all the families of the earth. These all possess the characteristics
enumerated above, which are preeminently the characteristics of their Head.
All, therefore, who hunger and thirst after righteousness, whose souls thirst
after God as the hart for the water-brook, and who, having found him, have
consecrated themselves to him and received the anointing of the holy spirit,
witnessing with their spirits that they are the sons of God, and who as
anointed sons can discover in themselves the worthy traits of true sons,
enumerated above,--loyalty, faithfulness, zeal, energy, courage, discretion,
etc.,--these constitute the class with whom the Lord has made an everlasting
covenant and to whom belong "the sure mercies of David."
Hear
them--"With whom my hand [my power, dominion, kingdom] shall be
established: mine arm [of support and strength] also shall strengthen him [to
perform the great preparatory work of sacrifice]. The enemy shall have no
advantage over him, nor the son of iniquity have power to hurt him. [All
things, even the deep and wicked designs of the adversary, shall be so
overruled by God as to work together for good to this David class].
"And
I will beat down his foes before his face, and plague them that hate him. But
my faithfulness and my mercy shall be with him; and in my name shall his horn
[his authority and power] be exalted. I will set his hand also in the sea, and
his right hand in the rivers. [His power will in due time control all the
restless, ungovernable masses of the world, which like the raging sea will make
great commotion in the time of trouble with which this age closes.]
"He
shall cry unto me, Thou art my father, my God, and the rock of my salvation.
[Even in the midst of their earthly course of trial and sacrifice they shall
have communion and fellowship with God: they shall realize his fatherly love
and care and rejoice in his salvation.]
"Also
I will make him, my firstborn ["the Church of the firstborn"], higher
than the kings of the earth. My mercy will I keep for him forevermore, and my
covenant shall stand fast with him. His seed also [redeemed and restored
mankind to whom Christ will be "the everlasting father"--Isa. 9:6;
Psa. 45:16]
will I make to endure forever [they shall have everlasting life], and his
throne as the days of heaven. If his children forsake my law and walk not in my
judgments; if they break my statutes, and keep not my commandments; then will I
visit their transgression with the rod, and their iniquity with stripes.
Nevertheless, my loving kindness will I not utterly take from him, nor suffer
my faithfulness to fail. [This has reference principally to the fleshly people
of God, and partially to the world during the Millennium.]
"My
covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips.
Once have I sworn by my holiness, that I will not lie unto David [Christ]. His
seed shall endure forever, and his throne as the sun before me. It shall be
established forever as the moon, and as a faithful witness in heaven."
Such
are the "sure mercies of David" thus divinely assured to the Gospel
Church, Head and body.
The
subject of this lesson is one of the most vital to human existence, both in
this life and in the life to come. Without a true and unwavering knowledge of
this subject one misses so much in this life that is due him. If one will truly
master the following truths and simply refuse ever to fail in practicing them
to the letter, he will never experience the many unanswered prayers that the
average person does. One can get what he WANTS from God if he will literally do
what God says for him to do. The absolute assurance of receiving from God in
abundance is just as certain as anything can possibly be if one will follow the
instructions given in this lesson. God cannot fail. His promises cannot fail.
The believer cannot fail if he will be as dogged about refusing to accept any
failure as most men seem determined to fail in the business of asking and
receiving. The following great lessons on prayer and how to get answers to
prayer should be fervently practiced until asking is second nature and
receiving is a normal experience:
I.
What Prayer Is
Prayer
is the offering up of our desires for lawful and needful things and things we
want that are promised by God, with humble confidence that we will obtain them
through Jesus Christ for God's glory and for our good. It is the pleading of
our cause in God's court. Prayer is seeking help from God in matters that are
beyond our power. It is the personal appeal to a personal and present God based
upon His will and Word and our lawful desires. It is cooperation with God's
willingness to manifest His goodness to all those who have faith in Him and
depend upon Him for help. Prayer is simply asking and receiving from God, and
that is the theme of this lesson.
II.
General Facts About Asking and Receiving
1.COMMANDS TO PRAY (1 Chron. 16:11; 2 Chron.
7:14; Ps. 105:4; Isa. 55:6; Matt. 7:7-11; Eph. 6:18; Phil. 4:6; 1 Thess. 5:17;
Heb. 4:16).
2.TIME TO PRAY: daily, in the morning (Ps. 5:3;
88:13; 143:8); twice daily (Ps. 88:1); thrice daily (Ps. 55:17; Dan. 6:10);
without ceasing ( 1 Thess. 5:17); at night (Mark 1:35; Luke 6:12); night and
day (Luke 2:37).
3.ATTITUDES IN PRAYER: standing (Luke 18:13);
sitting (Acts 1:14; 2:2; Luke 10:13); lying (2 Sam. 12:16-20); kneeling (Ps.
95:6; Dan. 6:10; Luke 22:41, Acts 9:40; 20:36; 21:5); weeping (Ezra 10:1; 1
Sam. 1:10); talking (Gen. 18:23-33); meditating (Ps. 5:1); agonizing (Luke
22:44); groaning (Rom. 8:26-27); and in the Spirit (Eph. 6:18; Jude 20).
4.WHERE TO PRAY: in closets (Matt. 6:6); on
mountains (Matt. 14:23); in homes and in temples and everywhere (Acts 1:13-14;
2:46; 3:1; 12:12; 1 Tim. 2:8).
5.HOW NOT TO PRAY: Jesus taught that men should
not pray like the hypocrites to be seen of men and not like the heathen who think
that God hears for much speaking (Matt. 6:5-8)
6.THE PURPOSE OF PRAYER. The chief end of all
prayer should be to glorify God and to make full our joy (John 14:13-15:
16:24).
7.GROUND FOR ASKING AND RECEIVING. The true
ground for prayer and its answer is to be born again and have the right
relationship to God. Only true, saved men have the right to ask and receive
anything that they want from God. Sinners who rebel and refuse to surrender
their lives to God and become reconciled to Him have no true ground of approach
to God. They have no foundation for their faith. God, many times in His mercy,
helps sinners and hears their cry of despair, but He is not obligated to do for
them what He has promised until they obey Him. It is merely because He wants to
prove to the sinner His love and mercy even though he is a rebel. Paul said,
"the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance" and "God
commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners Christ died
for us" (Rom. 2:4; 5:8).
The
first promise that a sinner can legally claim through the death of Christ is
that of forgiveness and cleansing from all sin (Acts 2:38; 3:19; 1 John 1:9).
If a sinner will truly repent and turn from sin to righteousness and get born
again, he is immediately on praying grounds for anything else that God has
promised to men. So a right relationship with God is the true ground of asking
and receiving (Matt. 7:7-11; Luke 11:1-13; John 14:12-15; 15:7, 16; 16:23-26; 1
John 3:20-24; 5:13-15).
With
the proper relationship with God it becomes our family right, legal right,
redemptive right, gospel right, needful right, and creative right to ask and
receive anything and everything that the Father has promised His own children.
There should be no question as to personal rights or the outcome of prayer
according to those rights, for all things belong to God and His children, and
His sons will inherit all things in the end when rebellion is finally put down
(Rom. 8:17-18; 1 Pet. 1:2-5; Rev. 21:7). If all things belong to us and we will
finally inherit them, why not get what we want of them here and now? At least,
why should it not be our right to get what God has promised and provided for us
of these things here and now ?
III.
The Certainty of Answered Prayer
Asking
is receiving according to Jesus: "Ask, and it shall be given you, seek and
ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: for every one that
asketh RECEIVETH; and he that seeketh FINDETH; and to him that knocketh IT
SHALL BE OPENED" (Matt. 7:7-8). The first letters of these three
words—ask, seek, and knock, spell ASK. This is not a mere coincidence. It is a
divine fact that all one has to do is to ask. Asking, however, presupposes a
God who hears and answers prayers. If one asks in mockery or from mere form
without faith he does not truly ask. One must ask in faith nothing wavering,
and then he will receive (James 1:5-9; Heb. 11:6). There can be no failure, or
God is not true; so let there not be a doubt about the fact of it, for God is
true.
Jesus
continued by showing the infinite fatherhood of God and stated that God loves
His children more than any human parent could possibly love his own flesh and
blood. This means that it is not and cannot be the will of God for one child of
His to be sinful, rebellious, defeated, unhappy, sick, poor, wanting, worrying,
complaining, and discouraged concerning any one thing in life. It could not be
the will of earthly parents for their children to suffer these things, and no
parent would tolerate these conditions in the lives of his children if he could
prevent it. Earthly parents would speedily deliver their children from all such
enemies. Earthly parents long to help and they will do everything possible to
help their children to get the best things in life, to be healthy, to be prosperous,
and to be happy. Does God love His children any less than do earthly parents?
Certainly not!
Jesus
proved that God loves His children more than earthly parents when He said,
"Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a
stone? Or if he asks a fish, will he give him a serpent? If ye then, being
evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, HOW MUCH MORE shall your
heavenly Father which is in Heaven give good things to them that ASK him?"
(Matt. 7:9-11). What more could a child of God want than such a broad and
all-inclusive promise of the infinite fatherhood of God. What more would or
could one desire for proof that it is the will of God for him to ask
anything—wealth, health, cleansing from sin, keeping from sin, or anything that
is desired in life?
In
the same sermon on the mount Jesus taught us to pray, "Thy will be done in
Earth, AS IT IS IN HEAVEN" (Matt. 6:10). Is it God's will for men to be
sick and sinful when they get to heaven? Is it God's will for men to be
defeated and poverty-stricken and unhappy in heaven? Is it God's will for men
to be tormented by demons and to carry about forever in Heaven the works of the
devil in their bodies, souls, and spirits? Is it God's will in Heaven for men
to be abandoned by God and forsaken by Him after He once gets them there? You
know full well the answer to these questions. If these things are not God's
will m Heaven, they are not God's will on Earth. One can have freedom from
these things on Earth just as much as he will be free from them in Heaven if he
will but ASK AND RECEIVE, according to the will of God, here and now. Now is
the time we need to ask and receive and not in the next life. Here and now we
need the will of God done and not in Heaven, for we are not yet there.
May
God Himself wake us up to see our privileges in the gospel here and now when we
need so many things. Prayer will never fail when it is done right. Heaven and
Earth will pass away more easily than prayer will become powerless and
fruitless if men will pray right. Prayer never fails when man never fails to
believe God when he asks for something. Prayer is absolute and unfailing when
faith is the same. At the grave of Lazarus Jesus said, "Father, I thank
thee that thou hast heard me. And I knew that thou hearest me always"
(John 11:41-42). This is a normal and a truthful attitude for every child of
God to take and maintain.
One
can say just as easily, "I can, I will, I do believe that God hears me and
answers my prayer," as to say, "It is hard to believe, I don't know
whether I can or not, I hope God hears me and answers prayer." One can
form right words and cause them to come out of his mouth just as he can tell a
lie, and if he is that kind of person, it is infinitely easier to tell the
truth than a lie. All statements of unbelief and all doubts and unbelief as to
whether God answers prayer or not are of the devil, and anyone who gives in to
any of these ideas is cooperating with the devil. He is making God a liar and
is hindering God from answering prayer for him. God will not on any one
occasion or in any one case transgress His law of faith and work contrary to
faith. If you believe that God will answer prayer, He will. If you believe that
he will not, then he will not. This is truth and nothing but the truth (Heb.
11:6; James 1:5-9).
In
Detroit, Michigan, about three years ago a deacon of a certain church took me
to see and to pray with a man that was paralyzed on one side and who had not
walked for about eight months. I spoke to him about his faith; and his very
first words, as I recall, were, "I believe in healing all right, but I
cannot seem to have faith for my healing." I got up and walked over to his
bed and said, "Don't you say that again. That is a lie. You can have faith
and you must have faith if you expect to get healed." I then quoted Mark
11:22-24 and emphasized the truth of this passage this way, "Believe you
have got it and you shall have it." This was my way of expressing verse
24. I said that over several times and got him to promise to believe God would
heal him and then prayed. While I was praying, the paralyzed man said, "If
I have got it, what am I lying here for?" With that he jumped out of bed
and shouted all over the place. I said, "Now you stay up until bedtime and
then go to bed and get up in the morning perfectly well. Forget that you ever
had paralysis."
It
is true, God will meet faith to the full extent of faith. Jesus sometimes would
say, "According to your faith so be it done unto you" or "as
thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee" (Matt. 8:13; 9:29). It is the
same today. An aggressive faith will produce aggressive works. A living faith
will produce life. A dead passive faith will produce death and failure.
In
John 14:12 Jesus promised power for praying and working. He promised that each
believer would be able to do what He did and even greater works upon one
condition: "He that believeth on me." We can argue that this is not
for us today or that there must be some mistake about such a broad promise, but
the fact that He said it still faces us, and we dare not make Him a liar and
expect to see Him in peace. This passage is plain. It means just what it says.
There can be no misunderstanding. It will pay us to believe it mentally whether
we want the experience of it or not. Men excuse themselves in a thousand ways,
but such excuses will last only in this life, and they serve a poor cause here.
They will not stand in the judgment.
In
many other passages Jesus gave believers the full power of attorney to use His
name to get anything in life that they want (John 14:12-15; 15:7, 16; 16:23-26;
Mark 16:16-20). This we shall see more fully in Lesson Twenty-two. All we want
you to see in this lesson is the absolute certainty of answered prayer for
anything and everything that you want in life.
There
are no impossibilities with God or with the believer who will believe God (Mark
9:23; 11:22-24; Matt. 17:20; 21:21-22; John 14:12-15; 15:7, 16). Possibilities
in prayer are great and many, and we should awake to attain the blessings of the
gospel. The world is dying for just such a program. God is going to hold modern
believers accountable. He will judge every preacher and teacher and the least
person who claims to believe the gospel for not boldly laying aside unbelief
and for not striving to attain to the faith once delivered to the saints (Jude
3).
Certainty
of answered prayer is also expressed in the Old Testament: "The eyes of
the Lord are upon the righteous, and his ears are open unto their cry. The
righteous cry, and the Lord heareth, and delivereth them out of ALL their
troubles" (Ps. 34: 15-17); "Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he
shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust
also in him; and he shall bring it to pass (Ps. 37:4-5); "He shall call
upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver
him, and honour him" (Ps. 91:15); "No good thing will he withhold
from them that walk uprightly" (Ps. 84:11).
IV.
Scientific Proof of Answered Prayer
Prayer
and its answer can be scientifically tested as any other thing can be. We do
not mean to say that God condescends to every whim of unbelieving man or that
He meets every test imposed by mere curiosity or scepticism. Jesus went about
answering prayer and doing all kinds of miracles in the moral, spiritual,
material, and physical realms, but when the unbelieving Jews sought a sign from
Heaven He did not satisfy unbelief (Matt. 12:39). Some men of unbelief lay down
certain laws as a prayer gauge, and anything other than these requirements are
not considered by them as an answer to prayer. Men have dared God to strike
them dead or some other foolish thing, thinking that the Almighty would not
dare to do so; and if He did not, they have gone off boasting that there was no
God.
God
has answered tests in the material realm that men have put to Him. In the case
of Elijah God answered when a contest was taking place between Him and the
prophets of false gods (1 Kings 18:36-38). In Egypt God manifested His power so
that all the Egyptians should know that He was the true and living God (Ex.
7:5; 8:10, 22-23; 9:16, 29; 11:7). God answered the sign Gideon asked for
(Judges 6:37-40). He answered Hezekiah by a sign, and the sun was turned ten
degrees backward (Isa. 38:5-8). He rebuked Ahaz for not asking a sign
"either in the depth, or in the height above" (Isa. 7:10-13). Jesus
Christ promised that men could remove literal mountains as He cursed the fig
tree and did other signs before men (Matt. 21:21-22). This, however, was never
done to satisfy mere unbelief and curiosity. It can be done only in sincerity
and faith.
When
we have multiplied thousands of definite and concrete answers to prayer on
record, both in the Bible and in all history, we do not have to obligate God to
a mere sign to satisfy unbelieving man. Proof of answered prayer fills many
pages of history, and this proof is sufficient to convince an honest inquirer.
The Lord heard Abraham and healed a whole nation (Gen. 20:7, 17); He heard
Eliezer and gave Isaac a wife (Gen. 24); He heard Isaac, and children were born
(Gen. 25:21-26); He heard Moses, and Israel was spared from death, and many
signs were given on many an occasion (Ex. 5:22-6:18; Ex. 32); and He heard
judges, prophets, priests and leaders in Israel, and early Christians times
without number (Num. 12:13-15; Ps. 3:4; 6:8; 18:6; 21:2-4; 22:24; 28:6; 30:2-3;
31:22; 34:4-6; 40:1; 66:19-20; 77:1; 81:7; 99:6-8; 106:44; 107:6-7, 13-20;
116:1-2; 118:5, 21; 138:3; Hosea 12:4; Jonah 2:1; Luke 23:42-43; John 1:42;
Acts 4:31; Jas. 5:17; etc.). These and scores of other testimonies in the Bible
prove that God has heard prayer for people of all past ages.
The
history of the church and of the lives of men throughout this age abound in
testimonies of answered prayer. We have more testimony of this kind to prove
the fact of answered prayer than we have concerning any scientific fact that
has been proved. If there is any fact that can be proved, it is that God
answers prayer. If there is any scientific statement that is capable of proof, this
one is. Hundreds of thousands of people today testify to answered prayer in
every phase of life. Let the skeptic go to any church, and he can find numbers
of people who will affirm in court that God has answered prayer. Space will not
permit testimonies we personally have had and know that others have had. If one
is doubtful, he can get such proof from his next-door neighbor. He can ask any
true Christian, and he can collect all the proof that is needed. We must now
proceed to the practical help in prayer that men need today.
V.
The Secrets of Asking and Receiving
1.
LEARN TO PRAY RIGHT. This is one of the greatest lessons to learn about prayer.
One cannot get an answer unless he prays right. In Luke 11:1 we have a record
of the disciples observing how Jesus prayed. They knew that God always heard
Him. There was such absolute simplicity and assurance when He prayed, and there
came a hunger to them to know how to pray as He could. They asked Him
"Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples." This
should be the daily longing of every true child of God. The need of knowing how
to pray right is the need of the hour.
Christ
is the greatest teacher of prayer. He practiced it Himself. We must learn to
pray like Jesus, and God will always hear us, for He always heard Him and God
is no respecter of persons. The following points will enable anyone to learn
the art of prayer as far as knowing what to do is concerned. They never will
give a practical experience of prayer. That remains for much practice in
following doggedly the lessons learned by us concerning what to do to get
answers to prayer. Knowing what to do and doing it are two different things.
There must be not only a knowledge, but there must be obedience to the light we
have concerning prayer if we are to get an answer to prayer. Since we know our
need of knowing how to pray, and since we have the greatest teacher to help us
to pray, let us apply ourselves until prayer becomes second nature to us as it
was with Him.
2.
THE MODEL PRAYER. (Luke 11:2-4). The so-called Lord's Prayer is really a prayer
for disciples or learners of how to pray. It was given on the occasion when the
disciples asked, "Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his
disciples" (Luke 11:1-4). All believers can consider themselves mere
learners and model after this
prayer
until they have graduated from the school of prayer. At least, until the time
comes when they get every prayer answered that they pray. With this as the goal
e
can all consider ourselves in the same school learning the same lessons on
prayer There are several lessons we need to learn about this prayer:
(1)
OUR FATHER. This teaches a new and right relationship to God by the new birth
(John 3:1-8; 2 Cor. 5:17; Gal. 5:24; John 15:7; 1 John 2:29; 3:7-10; 5:1-4,
13-18). It is generally taught that men in the Old Testament days never dared
address God as "Father," because they were not born again, but a
search for scriptures to prove this point only proves the contrary. Men of all
ages past were born again by faith in the coming Redeemer and His blood that
was to be shed, just as men today are born again by faith in the blood that has
been shed. This is clear from Deut. 14:1; 32:18; 2 Sam. 7:14; 2 Chron. 28:6;
Isa. 1:2; 63:16; Hosea 1:10; Ps. 82:6; Gal. 4:28-30; Rom. 4:1-25; Heb. 11. Men
in past ages before the cross asked and received on the same grounds that we do
today, as is clear from the scriptures under Point IV above. The right
relationship to God means much and is one of the greatest secrets of answered prayer.
Why should anyone be so presumptuous as to approach God stained with sin
against Him and in open rebellion to Him and His Word and then expect Him to do
for them what He has promised only to His children?
Not
only should we have the new and right relationship to God, but we must learn to
whom prayer should be addressed. God the Father—our Father, is the one that
should be addressed in prayer. Jesus taught us that in John 16:23-26, "In
that day [when I go back to the Father] ye shall ASK ME NOTHING.... Whatsoever
ye shall ASK THE FATHER in my name, he will give it you. Hitherto have ye asked
nothing in my name: ASK, AND YE SHALL RECEIVE, that your joy may be full.... At
that day ye shall ASK IN MY NAME." God the Father is the head of Christ
and the Holy Spirit, and therefore He should be the one directly addressed in
prayer (1 Cor. 11:3; Eph. 3:14-16).
The
habit of praying either to Jesus or to the Holy Spirit personally should be
broken, for we have no authority for any such praying. It is true that God
overlooks ignorance of this fact as well as of other facts but if we want to
learn to pray, we should learn right and always practice what we learn. God's
Word should not be ignored on this point any more than on other points.
Children of God sometimes, because of the freedom that they have found in
Christ, willfully ignore certain technical facts of truth and never seem
concerned to obey to the letter. This may be the cause of so much unanswered
prayer, for we are told that "to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it
not, to him it is sin" (James 4:17). Men sometimes take the attitude that
they are not going to pay any attention to little details like this, but we
warn that it would be best to keep the letter of the Word at least, since an
attitude which disregards things written is certainly not the spirit of the
Word. God commands obedience to the Word, not to what we think is right. It
will not be a sin to obey the letter. When we transgress the letter of the
Word, we do not obey the spirit or the letter of the Word. To do the will of
God will not make us formal. If it does, to maintain a form is much better than
to disobey God and His Word. Saul learned that, and his lesson was recorded for
our profit (1 Sam. 15:22-30).
We
are not trying to teach that one should not recognize Christ or the Holy Spirit
in prayer and communion. Give them their proper scriptural place and worship
all three persons in the Godhead and commune with all three in the proper way,
but address all petitions to the Father in the name of Jesus by the power of
the Holy Spirit. Praying in the name of Jesus to Jesus is foolish, and praying
to God and not in the name of Jesus has no promise of reward. All prayer that
ignores Jesus or the Holy Spirit in their proper place is not a true biblical
prayer and has no assurance of being heard by God.
(2)
"WHICH ART IN HEAVEN." This teaches that men are associated with God
in Heaven itself, and states the place where God dwells, as we have seen in
Lesson Four, Point 9. Paul said, "our conversation [citizenship] is in
heaven; from whence we look for the Saviour" (Phil. 3:20-21). The child of
God should constantly recognize the source of his blessings and the place of
his citizenship, which guarantees to him certain rights just as much as any
citizen of any other country.
(3)
"HALLOWED BE THY NAME." This teaches the new manner of approach to
God. Worship, adoration, and praise should precede petitions and go along with
them (Phil. 4:6; Heb. 13:15-16). This procedure abounds in all the psalms. If
our praise of God balanced our asking, we would receive more. Praise
demonstrates faith, and faith brings the answer to prayer. If one does not seem
to have faith, let him praise God much for what he has received and what he is
going to receive, and faith will grow that will dare believe God for anything.
(4)
"THY KINGDOM COME." This puts the interests of God and the kingdom
first—the needs of others before our own desires. This is loving our neighbors
as ourselves. The kingdom of God and its interests are the chief subjects for
prayer.
(5)
"THY WILL BE DONE, AS IN HEAVEN, SO IN EARTH." This accepts and
agrees with the Father's will in all things. It is submission in prayer to the
will of God, yet refuses to be denied concerning all that is promised as God's
will. If we would be just as dogged in refusing failure in prayer as we are in
accepting failure, there would be very little failure. (See Point III above
concerning God's will.)
(6)
"GIVE US DAY BY DAY OUR DAILY BREAD." After we have followed the
above instructions, we have the proper relationship to God; we have directed
our prayer to the right source; we have worshipped God, not to get from Him,
but because we love Him; we have put the interests of the kingdom first; we
have the definite promises before us that definitely cover our needs; and we
accept what we are to pray for as the will of God; then we are ready to make
our petition known to God. It is sad to say that the majority of people who
pray have their own interests first and always. All they know about prayer is
"Give me, give me, give me," and that is about all God hears. This is
all right in its proper place, but we must show God we have His interests at
heart as well as those of others and that we love Him and long to bless others
regardless of personal needs. When Solomon took this attitude he was heard of
God (1 Kings 4:4-15).
When
Charles Page, a multi-millionaire of Tulsa, Oklahoma, prayed for the healing of
his wife and bargained with God to help the poor if He would do it, he did not
get an answer. He went back to God and confessed trying to bargain with God to
get something personal; he promised to help the poor because it was right, not
because he wanted his wife healed. She was instantly healed, and he gave
millions to the poor through many years.
(7)
"AND FORGIVE US OUR SINS; FOR WE ALSO FORGIVE EVERY ONE THAT IS INDEBTED
TO US." Confession of sins and personal wrongs to others goes far in
getting answers to prayers. One cannot expect to keep sinning or have the wrong
attitude toward others and still be heard of God. If men would quit the sin
business and live in peace, and love all men as the gospel teaches, answers
from God could be expected without going through a long process of building up
faith again. In Matt. 6:14, Jesus based answer to prayer upon mercy shown to
others. When we forgive we can expect God to forgive. When we are kind and good
and merciful we can expect the same consideration from God.
(8)
"LEAD US NOT INTO TEMPTATION, BUT DELIVER US FROM EVIL." Guidance and
deliverance from God should be part of our prayer life, and it can be expected
when we have faithfully met all the conditions mentioned above of asking and
receiving.
3.
THE BOLDNESS OF GOD'S FRIENDS (Luke 11:5-8; Heb. 4:14-16; 10:19-23.) One of the
greatest secrets of asking and receiving is that of being bold to come to the
throne of grace. This shows immediate need as well as friendship with God. When
men are afraid to come boldly to God this fear indicates lack of faith and
trust, and this in turn, indicates that either the heart is not right or that
the child of God is under direct attack from demons. When one lives clean and
holy before God, there is a natural confidence in God which is a result of a
close walk with God. If one is living a true Christian life and he still feels
fear of God and is timid about coming to God, he may be under attack by demons.
In that case he should resist the devil and ignore such feelings and approach
God in all confidence. One can always tell whether he has sinned and is under
condemnation or not. If there has been no known sin, then without doubt evil
spirits are trying to counterfeit convictions of sin where no sin has been
committed.
Jesus
gives an illustration of this boldness in friendship in Luke 11:5-8. One friend
went to another for bread at midnight because he had to have it at that time
and not on the morrow. He got it, not because of friendship, but because of
boldness in importunity. Friendship creates boldness to make demands on a
friend. The greater the friendship the greater the boldness in times of need.
In
Heb. 4:14-16 men are commanded to come boldly to the throne of grace to obtain
mercy to help in time of need. This boldness is based upon the fact that we
have a great high priest who is touched with the feeling of our infirmities and
who has been tempted in all points as we are. With such a mediator between God
and man and with such a friend representing us before the Father we cannot fail
to get answers to our prayers (Rom. 8:34; 1 Tim. 2:4-6).
The
basis of coming to God in Heb. 10:19-23 is the blood of Jesus Christ, which
gives one a new way of approach to God so that all can "draw near to God
with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from
an evil conscience.... Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without
wavering; for he is faithful that promised."
4.
FAITH IN THE CERTAINTY OF ANSWERED PRAYER AND THE INFINITE FATHERHOOD OF GOD
(Luke 11:9-13). This has already been considered in Point III above, which see.
5.
The ALL-COMPREHENSIVE GIFT (Luke 11:9-13). Jesus promised that children of God
had a greater gift that was due them than what they had received in the new
birth. The gift of the Holy Spirit is here promised to every child of God. His
help is one of the secrets of successful praying. The fact that this gift is
promised only to children of God proves that it is not the reception of the
Holy Spirit in a measure at the new birth, which experience comes to every
child of God when born again (Rom. 8:9,14-16).
This
all-inclusive gift refers to the fullness of the Holy Spirit in the life of the
believer after the new birth. One must be a child of God before he can receive
the fullness of the Spirit. This was the case with Jesus (Matt. 3:16-17; Luke
4:18-21; John 3:34); the disciples (Acts 2); the Samaritans (Acts 9:5-25); Paul
(Acts 9:1-17); and the Ephesians (Acts 19:1-7). In the case of Cornelius, God
saved and gave them the Spirit baptism all at once (Acts 10:43-48; 11:14-18;
15:7-11); so one can receive the Spirit baptism at the time he receives the new
birth if he believes. If he does not, which is true of many, then he should ask
God for it, as Jesus taught in Luke 11:13, "HOW MUCH MORE shall your
heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?" This whole
passage (Luke 11:9-13) proves that gifts for people who are already children is
the subject. God gave this gift to Cornelius and his house when they were saved
to prove that there is not necessarily a time element between the various
blessings of God. If there is a time between any blessings of God it is because
of the individual knowledge and faith limiting God to work in a certain way.
The
Holy Spirit is one of our great helpers in prayer: "Likewise the Spirit
also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we
ought: but the Spirit himself maketh intercession for us with groanings which
cannot be uttered." With both Christ and the Holy Spirit as our helpers
how could there be a failure in prayer? (Rom. 8:26-27, 34). When we receive the
all-comprehensive gift we receive the all-comprehensive Helper in prayer; so
let us have faith and boldness in prayer for all that we want in this life and
in the life to come.
6.
THE POWER OF PERSEVERING PRAYER (Luke 18:1-8). One chief secret of answered
prayer is that of perseverance. "Men ought always to pray and not to lose
heart." Jesus illustrated this truth by showing how a widow was avenged of
her adversary by pestering a judge until he said in himself, "Though I
fear not God, nor regard man; Yet because this widow troubleth [pestereth] me,
I will avenge her lest by her continual coming she weary [pester] me."
Jesus added, "And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry DAY AND
NIGHT unto him, though he bear long with them? I tell you he will avenge them
speedily." If Elijah had become discouraged in praying for rain every time
his servant reported no rain, he never would have got rain. He prayed seven
times with his face between his knees and the seventh time rain came (1 Kings
18:42-46).
7.
HUMILITY IN PRAYER (Luke 18:9-14). Jesus here gives us a parable of the
publican and the Pharisee who prayed together in the temple. By this He showed
very clearly that humility was one of the secrets of successful praying. One
humbled himself and smote upon his breast and would not so much as look up to
Heaven, saying, "God be merciful to me a sinner." Jesus said that man
went down to his house justified rather than the Pharisee who was so proud of
himself and his good life that he took all his prayer period to brag about
himself to God. He was self-righteous and despised others, and this kind of
people who pray are never heard of God. He ended this story by saying,
"For every one that exalteth himself shall be abased, and he that humbleth
himself shall be exalted." If one wants to be heard of God he must take an
humble attitude, not depending upon his own merits in the least.
One
of the greatest faults of the old Christians is to depend more upon how long
they have beet saved, how good they have lived, how much better Christians they
are than others, and how much more experienced and advanced in grace they are
than others. They seem to think prayer and its answer are based upon these
things. They think that God ought to jump at the chance to hear their prayers.
They seem to think that they are special pets of God because of long service
and faithful lives in holiness. They often complain because God will not heal
them or otherwise answer their prayers, and because He does answer prayers and
heal and bless some old sinner that knows that he has no merits to base a
single prayer upon. This is the reason some are heard and some are not. God
does not care for one good thing a man has done or how long one has been saved
when it comes to the answer to prayer. He does not judge or answer on these
grounds. He answers solely according to the attitude of humility and faith on
the part of the one praying. It is to the discredit of old believers that they
have not learned more about God and His Word than to expect God to answer on any
other basis.
8.
GET ALONE WITH GOD (Matt. 6:5-8). This secret of answered prayer must be
learned well by the believer. Jesus taught that answers to prayer would be
given when men learn to get alone with God and pray to be heard of God and not
men. Private prayer in secret has the greatest chance of an answer because of
the fact that there is no temptation to pray to be heard of men. One does not
search for flowery words to use in prayer when alone. He simply gets down in
earnest and pours out his soul to God and voices his needs in the most simple
terms. One secret of asking and receiving then is to "pray to thy Father
in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly."
No believer ever learns to pray right unless he spends much time alone with God
in sweet personal communion. This does not forbid public prayer, but it does
forbid all public praying to be seen of men. One can pray in secret, yet in
public, if he will shut out all thoughts of men and pray to be heard of God
alone. One would be guilty of praying a public prayer in private, if he tries
to pray loud enough to attract attention of people to his praying.
9.
THE WORD OF GOD AND PRAYER (Matt. 8:8; John 15:7). If one wants to get answers
to prayer let him first get the promises of God that cover his need and accept
the answers as already being God's will by His Word. Let him have faith in the
Word as the basis of God's will and the assurance of the answer. The centurion
said, "speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed." He told
the Lord that he believed that His word was all-sufficient to cast out the
demons in His servant, just as his own word was sufficient to get action on the
part of the hundred soldiers under his authority. Jesus marveled at this faith.
So if this is what faith is, we can all have faith if we want to have it. Faith
is simply taking God at His Word.
So
much praying is done without any regard to whether God has promised the thing
that is asked for, or without any thought of believing the promise or accepting
the answer as a fact if the promise is known. There is no real, tangible
connection between prayer and the Word of God, and hence prayer goes
unanswered. If one cannot believe what God has said, he makes God a liar; and
He then is not under obligation to answer at all. If one wants to obligate God
to an answer he must take God at His word and count it a settled fact that he
has the thing prayed for according to the Word. All praying should be done on
the basis of the Word of God, and the promises should be quoted and used in
prayer. God knows what He has promised, but He wants man also to know it and
ask accordingly in faith, nothing wavering (James 1:5-9). "If ye abide in
me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done
unto you" (John 15:7).
10.
THE FAITH THAT TAKES. This secret of answered prayer is very clear in
Scripture. Note how simple the Bible is on this point: "Have faith in God
For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou
cast into the sea; and SHALL NOT DOUBT IN HIS HEART, BUT SHALL BELIEVE THAT
THOSE THINGS WHICH HE SAITH SHALL COME TO PASS, HE SHALL HAVE WHATSOEVER HE
SAITH. Therefore I say unto you, WHAT THINGS SOEVER YE DESIRE, WHEN YE PRAY,
BELIEVE THAT YE RECEIVE THEM [Believe that you have got them], AND YE SHALL
HAVE THEM" (Mark 11:22-24); "But without faith it is impossible to
please him: for he that cometh to God MUST BELIEVE THAT HE IS, AND THAT HE IS A
REWARDER OF THEM THAT DILIGENTLY SEEK HIM" (Heb. 11:6); "If any of
you lack wisdom [or any thing else], let him ask of God, THAT GIVETH TO ALL MEN
LIBERALLY, AND UPBRAIDETH NOT; AND IT SHALL BE GIVEN HIM. BUT LET HIM ASK IN
FAITH NOTHING WAVERING. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven
with the wind and tossed. FOR LET NOT THAT MAN THINK THAT HE SHALL RECEIVE ANY
THING OF THE LORD" (James l:5-9).
The
central thought in all these passages is: "BELIEVE THAT YOU HAVE GOT IT
AND YOU SHALL HAVE IT." Believe that it is already yours. See yourself
with it. Believe that you have got it already whether you literally see it or
not. "Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things
not seen" (Heb. 11:1). Faith laughs at impossibilities and counts all
things possible. It "calleth those things that be not as though they
were" (Rom. 4:17-22). One cannot have faith for something that he already
has, for "hope that is seen is not hope; for what a man seeth, why doth he
yet hope for? But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait
for it" (Romans 8:24-25).
Whoever
uses faith can master all; have all he desires; and there are no bounds to what
he can get. Faith will break through all barriers of reasonings, questionings,
doubts, and thoughts of unbelief. It will take hold of what is wanted by an
unshakable determination and will refuse to be denied. Faith will do all the
Bible says it will do. Work what faith you have and refuse to be discouraged.
Every impossible thing has finally yielded to pounding and increased pressure.
What we do not Use we lose is a divine law that never fails. Likewise it is a
divine law that whatever we Use increases (Luke 8:18; Rom. 10:17; Gal. 6:7-8).
The
Scriptures cited above also prove the unlimited possibilities of prayer if one
will use the faith that takes. Jesus said, "If thou canst believe, all
things are possible to him that believeth" (Mark 9:23) and "All
things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive"
(Matt. 17:20; 21:21-22). This is how men got answers in Bible days (Matt. 9:2,
27-29; Heb. 11). This is the only way men will get answers today; so we might
as well stop deceiving ourselves that God might answer apart from firm,
unwavering faith. He will not, for He said He will not, and He cannot lie (Heb.
11:6; James l:5-9). Faith and prayer will move mountains, but faithless prayer
will not move an ant hill.
11.
FASTING AND PRAYER—THE CURE FOR UNBELIEF. The disciples asked the Lord why they
could not heal the lunatic boy. Jesus said, "Because of your unbelief....
Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting" (Matt;
17:14-21). Faith needs prayer for its development and full growth, and prayer
needs fasting for its development and full growth. Fasting is a biblical
doctrine and has done wonders when used in combination with prayer and faith.
To fast means to abstain from food, which was the cause of the fall of man. It
is humbling the soul before God (Ps. 35:13); chastening of the soul (Ps.
69:10); and crucifying the appetites and denying them so as to give entire time
to prayer (2 Sam. 12:16-23; Matt. 4:1-11). It manifests earnestness before God
to the exclusion of all else (1 Cor. 7:5). It manifests obedience and gives the
digestive system a rest (Matt. 6:16-18; 9:15, Luke 5:33). It demonstrates the
mastery of man over appetites; aids in temptation; helps give power over
demons; develops faith; crucifies unbelief; and aids in prayer (Matt. 4:1-11;
17:14-21).
All
believers are supposed to fast but no regulations or set rules are ever given
as to how long or how often. That part is left up to the individual desire and
needs (Matt. 9:14-15; 1 Cor. 7:5; Acts 13:1-5). Men should fast when under
chastening (2 Sam. 12:16-23); when under judgment (1 Kings 21:27); when in need
(Ezra 8:21); when in danger (Esther 4); when worried (Dan. 6:18); when in
trouble (Acts 27:9, 33; when in spiritual conflict (Matt. 4:1-11); and when
desperate in prayer (Acts 9). We have thirty-five examples of fasting in the
Bible:
Who Fasted
Length
Result
1. Ahab
?
spared
from judgment (1 Kings 21:27-29).
2. Judah
?
delivered
from enemies (2 Chron. 20:1-25).
3. Judah
?
delivered
from enemies (Ezra 8:21-23).
4. Ezra
?
sin put
down in Israel (Ezra 10:6-17).
5. Nineveh
?
spared
from judgment (Jonah 3).
6.
Nehemiah
?
had
success in his desire (Neh. 1:4-2:10).
7. Jews
?
delivered
from enemies (Esther 4:1-3, 9:1-3).
8. David
(until
weak)
delivered from enemies (Ps. 35:13; 69:10;
109:24).
9. John's
disciples
?
no result
recorded (Matt. 9:14-15).
10. Anna
?
no result
recorded (Luke 2:37).
11. Church
at Antioch
?
Spirit
worked (Acts 13:1-5).
12. Paul
?
received a
revelation (Acts 27:9-11).
13.
Cornelius
?
received a
revelation (Acts 10).
14. Many
churches
?
no result
recorded (Acts 14:23).
15. Paul
?
no result
recorded (2 Cor. 6:5; 11:27).
16. David
(1 day)
no result
recorded ( 2 Sam. 3:35).
17. Judah
(1 day)
blessed
(Neh. 9: 1-4).
18. Judah
(1 day)
no result
recorded (Jer. 36:6).
19. Daniel
(1 day)
received a
revelation (Dan. 9:3,20-27).
20. Pharisee
(1 day)
not heard
because of sin (Luke 18:9-14).
21. Israel
(1 day)
gained the
victory (Judges 20:26-35).
22. Israel
(1
day)
gained the
victory (1 Sam. 7:6-14).
23. David
(1
day)
no result
recorded (2 Sam. 1:12).
24. King
Darius
(1 night)
Daniel
delivered (Dan. 6:18-24).
25.Esther,
Mordecai
(3 days)
prayer
answered (Esther 4:13-16; 5:1-9:3).
26. Many
people
(3 days)
fed
miraculously (Matt. 15:32-39).
27. Paul
(3 days)
healed and
baptized in the Spirit (Acts 9:9, 17).
28. David
(7 days)
not heard
because of sin (2 Sam. 12:16-23).
29. Israel
(7 days)
no result
recorded (1 Sam. 31:13).
30. Paul
and 276 men
(7 days)
delivered
from death (Acts 27:33-34).
31. Daniel
(21 days)
received a
revelation ( Dan. 10:3-13).
32. Moses
(40 days)
three
times, always heard (Deut. 9:9, 18, 25-29; 10:10).
