Revival Today Devotional Sunday, July 7th, 2014 BASIC PRINCIPLES OF THE NEW TESTAMENT PRAYER (2) “You continue to ask and do not receive, because you are asking with a wrong purpose, in order to spend it upon your pleasures.” (James 4:3 MNT) God is a loving Father; His care and love for us transcends our deepest understanding, comprehension, or even our wildest imaginations. God’s ears are always opened to our prayers and He is much more eager and willing to answer our prayers than we are eager and willing to receive. The Scripture testifies to God’s eagerness to answer the prayers of His children. God promises, “And before they make their request I will give an answer, and while they are still making prayer to me, I will give ear.” (Isa. 65:24 BBE). The angel sent to Daniel to give the answer to his prayer said to him, “At the first word of your prayer a word went out, and I have come to give you knowledge; for you are a man dearly loved: so give thought to the word and let the vision be clear to you.” (Dan. 9:23 BBE). God is ever swift to answer the prayers of His children. At the first word of your prayer, the answer is already given and released! Hallelujah! Although God is eager and swift to answer prayers, yet He does not answer all prayers. Even though God is a very loving Father, yet He is not a sentimental or effusively emotional being that can be swayed, persuaded or influenced by mere gesticulations, loud cries, screaming or shouting in prayer. We can never exert any control upon God or manipulate Him to answer our prayers through our vain repetition, desperation, gesticulation or posture in prayers. God cannot be hurried, compelled or driven to answer our prayers by increasing the volume or intensity of our prayers, by hiring or gathering more people to pray with or for us, or by going to a certain sacred or hallowed place to pray. If we don’t pray according to God’s laid down principles of prayer in the New Testament, our prayers are void and useless; they are nothing but fleshly, futile and profitless exercises. In the first part of this piece we began to examine some basic principles that should govern our prayers as the New Testament saints. Let us recap what we have examined so far. First, our prayers must be offered only to the living God who created the heavens and the earth: It is idolatry to offer our prayers to any other being whether man or god, saints or sinners, dead or living. Prayer is a spiritual offering that only the true and living God is worthy to receive (Acts 12:5, Rev. 8:3). Second, our prayers or requests must be offered to God only through and in the name of Jesus Christ: Our prayers will not attract God’s attention if not presented to Him through His Son Jesus Christ who is the only approved Mediator between God and men, and also our Advocator before God (1 Tim. 2:5, 1 John 2:1). Third, our prayers must be according to God’s will, plan, promise, or purpose for our lives revealed to us in God’s Word by the Holy Spirit: It is a vain exercise when we pray contrary to God’s perfect will, plan and purpose for our lives or situations. The Scripture states: “Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.” (1 John 5:14 NKJV). Let us now consider more basic principles of prayer in the New Testament. Fourth, our motives, intentions or purposes of praying are very crucial to receiving the answers to our prayers: God always looks beyond our loud cries, gesticulations, desperation, or repetitions of words in prayer into our hearts to consider or examine the reasons, motives or thrusts behind our requests, petitions or supplications before He grants them. Therefore, it is always good to check out, examine and purify your motives before you present your requests to God. What are you presently seeking in prayer to receive from God? Why do you want it and what do you want to do with it? If the motive or thrust of your prayers is to gratify, pacify or glorify the flesh, or to promote, advance or advertize yourself, or just to impress, intimidate or oppress someone else; it is a waste of time praying, for God will not answer your prayers. Many of your prayers have not been answered because your motives for asking are carnal, selfish, impure and insincere. If your motive is for God’s glory, for God’s Kingdom, or for the good and benefit of others; God will surely answer you and grant your requests. But, when you pray with wrong motives, your prayers will not be answered. The Scripture says: “You continue to ask and do not receive, because you are asking with a wrong purpose, in order to spend it upon your pleasures.” (Jam. 4:3 MNT). “There they cry out, but He does not answer, because of the pride of evil men.” (Job 35:12 NKJV). “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear.” (Psa. 66:18 NKJV). Fifth, God only answers when you pray in faith: It is not the length, duration, frequency, loudness, or volume of your prayers that attracts God’s attention, but faith in your heart while praying. The efficacy or power of your prayer does not depend on the volume, loudness, frequency or duration of your prayer, nor on your gesticulation or posture while praying, but on your faith and revelation knowledge of God’s Word. God only answers prayers from a heart that trusts in God’s faithfulness and ability to perform what He has promised in His Word. It is only the prayer of faith that avails much and produces amazing results, for that is the only kind of prayer that God always honours and answers (Jam. 5:15). Most of our prayers have failed simply because of our doubts and unbelief. Jesus clearly says: “And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith. (Matt. 21:22 RSV). “Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.” (Mark 11:24 RSV). James also admonishes: “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. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord.” (Jam. 1:6-7 NKJV). Lastly, it is the fervent prayer of the righteous that will avail much: The born-again believers have received the righteousness of God as a gift through faith in the person and finished work of Jesus Christ. The Scripture states: “For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” (2 Cor. 5:21 NKJV). The New Testament believers are the righteousness of God in Christ. We are always and completely accepted to God in Christ (Eph. 1:6). And God is committed to answering our prayers of faith. Beloved, if you have not surrendered your whole life to Jesus Christ, acknowledging and confessing Him as your Lord and Saviour your prayers are ineffective and cannot avail much. It is only the prayers of the born-again believers that are effective and powerful. The Scripture testifies that: “The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.” (Jam. 5:16b NLT). However, God’s ears are always opened to the cry or prayer of sinners who call upon Him for forgiveness, mercy and salvation. If you cry out today to the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, to save you from your sins; He will answer you. God is committed to answering the prayers of His children who continue to abide in the teachings of Christ, walking in His footsteps and seeking to conform increasingly to Christ in their will, mind, emotions and actions. The Scripture states: “And whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do those things that are pleasing in His sight.” (1 John 3:22 NKJV). However, the believers who deliberately and consistently choose to walk in disobedience to God’s Word may have answers to their prayers delayed or hindered by the devil (1 Pet. 3:7). Friend, why not repent today of your disobedience to God’s Word so that the devil will not continue to nullify or hinder your prayers. The Scripture admonishes: “Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” (Jam. 4:7 NKJV). Jesus warns: And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses. (Mark 11:25-26 NKJV). Prayer: My Dear Heavenly Father, I repent today of my willful disobedience to Your Word that has given Satan the right to hinder or nullify my prayers. I receive God’s forgiveness today and I resist and bind the devil, in Jesus’ name. Amen. -Written by Jegede Sunday Emmanuel
Posted on: Sun, 06 Jul 2014 21:48:12 +0000
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