What Is Effective Prayer?

What Is Effective Prayer?

Introduction

If your Christian life were more like school, what would your report card look like? How would you describe your prayer life? Is it little more than a polite formality before meals, or a hasty word at the end of the day, or a last resort, when they have nowhere else to turn.

If so, what’s wrong with that kind of prayer life? Part of what’s wrong is that it gives us little time to spend in God’s presence as we communicate with Him. How do we get to know Him unless we truly spend time with Him?

Is it important to know God? Consider two passages of scripture:

(Mat 7:22-23 NKJV) "Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?' {23} "And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'

(2 Th 1:7-9 NKJV) and to give you who are troubled rest with us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, {8} in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. {9} These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power,

Prayer was an important part of the life of our Lord. On one occasion, when He stopped praying, the disciples asked Him to teach them to pray.

Luke 11:1 Now it came to pass, as He was praying in a certain place, when He ceased, that one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.”

In Jesus’ response to their request we can learn at least two things about prayer. Prayer requires effort, and prayer requires faith.

Body

I. Prayer Requires Effort.

A. According to Jesus, it is when prayer is persistent that it is effective.

1. Jesus illustrates this with the story of a man pounding on his neighbor’s door at midnight, -- Jesus presents prayer as a profound, persistent exercise.

Luke 11:5 And he said unto them, Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say unto him, Friend, lend me three loaves; {6} For a friend of mine in his journey is come to me, and I have nothing to set before him? {7} And he from within shall answer and say, Trouble me not: the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give thee. {8} I say unto you, Though he will not rise and give him, because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him as many as he needeth.

2. He used the illustration of the unjust judge.

(Luke 18:1-7 NKJV) Then He spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray and not lose heart, {2} saying: "There was in a certain city a judge who did not fear God nor regard man. {3} "Now there was a widow in that city; and she came to him, saying, 'Get justice for me from my adversary.' {4} "And he would not for a while; but afterward he said within himself, 'Though I do not fear God nor regard man, {5} 'yet because this widow troubles me I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.'" {6} Then the Lord said, "Hear what the unjust judge said. {7} "And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them?.

B. Prayer is not a substitute for Christian duty and responsibility.

There is a story told about a faithful old deacon whose oft repeated prayer expression was, "O Lord, touch the unsaved with Thy finger." One prayer meeting night he was leading in prayer when as he intoned this petition, as he so often did, he abruptly stopped praying. Supposing he had been taken suddenly ill, someone went to him and asked if there was anything wrong, if he were ill. "No," he replied, "I'm not ill. But something seemed to say to me, 'Thou art the finger'." -- from Bible Illustrator.

1. Pray as if everything depends on God, and work as if everything depends on you.

C. True prayer can be an agonizing work experience.

James 5:16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

II. Prayer Requires Faith.

A. Jesus states that faith is a requirement of our having our prayers answered.

Matthew 21:21 So Jesus answered and said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but also if you say to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ it will be done.22 “And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.”

B. James is also clear on the subject that effective prayer requires the kind of faith that expects an answer.

James 1:5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. {6} But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. {7} For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord;8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

C. Effective prayer requires the kind of faith that can accept God’s answer.

1. The Bible makes it clear that God answers prayer.

a. Abraham prayed and God healed Abimelech.

b. Hannah prayed and she received a child.

c. Elijah prayed and it did not rain.

d. Hezekiah prayed and his life was extended fifteen years

e. The disciples prayed and Peter was released from prison.

2. We need to understand that sometimes God’s answer is “no.”

a. God said “no” to the prayer of Paul that his “thorn in the flesh” might be removed.

2 Corinthians 12:7 And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure. {8} Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. {9} And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. {10} Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

b. He also said “no” to the prayer of his Son that He be allowed to escape the cross.

D. The real challenge of prayer is not to demand things of God, but to submit ourselves unto God; not to try to use Him, but to be used of Him, and to come to know Him better.

Conclusion

There is no limit to what God can do to an individual Christian or to a church who will exercise this form of disciplined, believing, persistent prayer. .

Prayer is a way of communicating our needs to God. It is also a way of our spending time in His presence, and coming to know Him better.

Is your life such that God will hear your prayers?

Have you been obedient to Him?

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