Sermon Central
-
Prayer 101 Series
Contributed by Pepe Gonzales on Mar 21, 2019 (message contributor)
Summary: Prayer is the fruit of a man or woman who understands their humanity and the sovereignty of an almighty God in other words you are God and I am human You are almighty and I am weak
PRAYER 101
Luke 18:1-14.....Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. 2 He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought. 3 And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’
4 “For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care what people think, 5 yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually come and attack me!’”
6 And the Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. 7 And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? 8 I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”
The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector
9 To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable: 10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’
13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’
14 “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
Today we are going to be talking about prayer What is Prayer? Prayer is simply talking to God
Prayer is the fruit of a man or woman who understands their humanity and the sovereignty of an almighty God in other words you are God and I am human You are almighty and I am weak
Lam 3:41 "Let us lift up our heart with our hands unto God in the heavens." When we believe that God is The creator of the universe and that we are his creation His workmanship then the only logical thing to do is to fall on our knees and worship Him, without a creator all we are is dust in the wind.
The act of prayer teaches us our unworthiness, which is a very valuable lesson for such proud beings as we are.
Ps. 10:4 The wicked in his proud countenance does not seek God; God is in none of his thoughts. What this is saying is that people don’t pray because of Pride
If God gave us things without having us pray for them we would never know how helpless we are, but true prayer is an inventory of wants, a catalogue of necessities, a revelation of hidden poverty.
WE DON’T HAVE SO WE ASK GOD WHO WILL NOT WITHHOLD ANY GOOD THING. Psalm 84:11 For the Lord God is a sun and shield; he bestows favor and honor. No good thing does the Lord withhold from those who walk uprightly.
Psalm 51:17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, A broken and a contrite heart— These, O God, You will not despise. To be always poor in self and rich in Jesus; weak as water personally, but mighty through God to do great exploits; and prayer, because, while it adores God, it lays us where we should be,
2 Cor. 12:10 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong. Prayer is a sign of our inability to save ourselves and of our dependence on God.
John 15:5 “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.
Phil 4:6"Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God."
Prayer empowers the wings of God's young eagles that they may learn to mount above the clouds.
Our ministries will only grow as big as our prayer lives.
Prayer girds the loins of God's warriors,( expound on the loins) and sends them forth to combat with their sinews braced and their muscles firm.
Prayer is that uplifted hand of Moses which defeats the Amalekites... Prayer isn't easy you just don't pray not everyone will be a "Prayer Warrior" but we can all go to War in Prayer ...
