Barnabas File

Encouraging Words from the Word by Maynard H. Belt

If Prayer Could Speak – What Would It Say?

“….the effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” James 5:16b

Introduction:

“If Prayer Could Speak…What Would It Say?” If prayer could speak I would like to suggest that it might say to us at least four things:

  1. I Am Intimately Related to the Sovereign Godhead
  2. I Am Infinitely Involved With the Sacred Scriptures
  3. I Am Intensely Connected With the Sanctuary of God
  4. I Am Indispensably Valuable To The Sanctity of the Saints


I. I Am Intimately Related To The Sovereign Godhead: Father, Son, Holy Spirit

  1. Prayer is intimately related to God the Father.
    1. The primary goal of prayer is the ear of God.Matt. 6:9 & Luke 11:2 – “Our Father, which art in heaven…..”

      Psa. 5:2 “Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my king, and my God: for unto thee will I pray.”

      Psa. 2:8 – “Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thy inheritance…”

    2. Prayer is the act of petitioning, praising, giving thanks, or confessing to God.
    3. The earliest instances of prayer in the Scriptures all ascribe individuals conversing directly with God. Such conversations took place between God and Adam (Gen. 3:9-12); Abraham (15:1-6); Moses (Ex. 3:1-4:17 – God spoke to Moses ‘face to face’ as a man speaks to his friend)); kings (I Sam. 23:2-4, I Kgs 3:5-53); and prophets (I Sam. 3:4-9); Isa. 6:1-13; Jer. 1:4-19).
    4. Paul is often ascribed as praying to God: I Cor. 1:4; Phil. 1:3; Col. 1:3
  2. Prayer is intimately related to God the Son.
    1. Jesus, our Lord, in Scripture is our model and instructor regarding prayer to the Father: transfiguration – Lk. 9:29; Gethsemane – 22:39-46; Crucifixion – 23:46; Matt. 6:9-13; John 17
    2. Scripture commands us to pray “in Jesus’ Name.” John 16:23, 26“Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you.” Jn. 16:23“In that day you will ask in My name…..” Jn. 16:26
    3. And we must not forget that another way in which prayer is related to God the Son, is that the Lord Jesus prays for us! Rom. 8:34; Heb. 7:25.
  3. Prayer is intimately related to God the Holy Spirit.
    1. First, the Holy Spirit guides and directs us as we pray so that we bring to God those petitions which are in His will – Rom. 8:26 – “Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with the groaning which cannot be uttered.”
    2. Secondly, we are to pray in the Spirit – Eph. 6:18a; Jude 20b – what does this mean….to pray in the Spirit? To be filled…..submitted…..subjected….sensitive.
    3. It is the Holy Spirit who breathes God’s own desire into us and enables us to intercede for souls…..Great things happen when the Holy Spirit is in control: Acts 1:1,4,41; 4:31-33

II. I Am Infinitely Involved With The Sacred Scriptures

“If my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.” Jn 15:7

  1. Psalm 119 is a directory of God’s Word…..therein the Psalmist often broke out into supplication (vs. 12, 18, 97, 103). From beginning to end God’s Word and prayer are intertwined.
  2. Bible reading and secret prayer are essential to a Spirit-filled life. Prayer must always be in line with God’s Word, for prayer opens the way for God’s Word.

    “Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the Word of the Lord may have free course, and be glorified.” II Thess. 3:1

  3. Prayer draws its very life from the Bible. Its very existence and character depend on revelation made by God to man in His holy Word. A good practice for prayer is to “pray the Scriptures,” – Phil. 1:9-11; Col. 1:9-12; Col. 4:2-6 are examples.

III. I Am Intensely Connected With The Sanctuary Of God

“My house shall be called the house of prayer” Matt. 21:13

  1. Prayer was associated with the Tabernacle – Ex. 25-40
  2. Prayer was associated with the O.T. Temple – Isaiah 56:7 “My house of prayer”
  3. Prayer was associated with the N.T. Temple – Matt. 21:13-14; Mark 11:17; Luke 19:46
  4. Prayer is associated with the N.T. local church – Acts 2:42; 4:24-31; 12:5,12; 13:3; 20:36; 21:5

IV. I Am Indispensably Valuable To The Sanctity Of The Saint

Introductory Note: But prayer says my value to you is conditional…..”….The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” James 5:16b

  • Prayer (Greek meaning) = supplication; fervent supplication; effective prayer; petition/plea; need/entreaty; “When a believing person prays, great things happen.” (NCV)
  • Effective (Greek meaning) = to be at work; to be operative; to show one’s self operative on behalf of another.
  • Righteous = (Greek meaning) one who observes divine laws and keeps the commands of God; innocent; faultless; guiltless
  • From a modified statement from Easton’s Bible Dictionary we find at least 7 conditions necessary for prayer to be effective in the life of the believer: “Acceptable prayer must be sincere, offered with reverence and godly fear, with a humble sense of our own insignificance as creatures and of our own unworthiness as sinners, with earnest importunity, and with unhesitating submission to the divine will. Prayer must also be offered in faith that God is, and is the hearer and answerer of prayer, and will fulfil His word, when petitioned in the name of Christ.
  1. Sincerity:- God is a Spirit and He searches the heart. He is not satisfied with mere words. He cannot be mocked – we offend God when our words do not genuinely express our hearts.Ps 17:1 Hear a just cause, O LORD, Attend to my cry; Give ear to my prayer which is not from deceitful lips.

    Prov 12:22 Lying lips are an abomination to the LORD, But those who deal truthfully are His delight.

    Isa 29:13 Therefore the LORD said: “Inasmuch as these people draw near with their mouths And honor Me with their lips, But have removed their hearts far from Me, And their fear toward Me is taught by the commandment of men,

    Heb. 10:22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.

  2. Reverence: God is infinite in His holiness as well as in knowledge and power.
    1. Whenever heaven is opened to our view, its inhabitants are seen prostrate before the throne.Rev 4:9-11 the twenty-four elders fall down before Him who sits on the throne and worship Him who lives forever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying: 11 “You are worthy, O Lord, To receive glory and honor and power; For You created all things, And by Your will they exist and were created.”Rev 5:8 Now when He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each having a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.

      Rev 19:9-10 And I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, “See that you do not do that! I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren who have the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

      Rev 19:9-10 And I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, “See that you do not do that! I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren who have the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

    2. In Scripture we see prayer described as bowing the knees (Eph. 3:14); looking up (Psa. 5:3); Lifting up the soul (Psa. 25:1); Pouring out the heart (Psa. 62:8); Crying to God (Psa. 27:7); Crying to heaven (2 Chron. 32:20); Seeking the face of the Lord (Psa. 27:8).
  3. Humility: Humility, first, is an awareness of our insignificance in His sight; and secondly, a proper understanding of our undeservedness, and uncleanness, before a holy and righteous God. We see this spirit manifested in the lives of:
    1. Job – “He hath cast me into the mire, and I am become like dust and ashes.” (Job. 30:19) “I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes.” (Job 42:6)
    2. Isaiah – “Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.” (Isa. 6:5)
    3. Publican – “And the publican, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat upon his breast, say, ‘God be merciful to me a sinner.’ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” (Luke 18:13-14)
    4. II Chron. 7:14 is still true: “If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and prayer and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sins and heal their land.”
    5. II Chron. 33:12-13: “…the captains of the army of the King of Assyria, who took Manasseh with hook, bound him with bronze fetters, and carried him off to Babylon. Now when he (Manasseh) was in affliction, he implored the LORD his God, and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers.” Humility must always precede and accompany any expressions to God in prayer.
  4. Importunity: This word means “persistence in making demands or requests; repeated demands or requests; to beg or annoy.”
    1. Matthew 15:21-28 is a great example of importunity in prayer where we have a woman of Canaan pleading to Christ on behalf of her demon-possessed daughter. She just wouldn’t leave Him alone!
    2. In Luke 18:1-8 we have the persistent widow and the unjust judge who said: “Because this widow troubles me I will vindicate her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.” (Vs. 5)
    3. In Luke 11:5-8 we have the persistent friend who would not quit knocking at midnight in order to get bread for another friend. The friend didn’t answer the door because he was a friend, but because he was persistent and wouldn’t go away!
    4. In Genesis 32:26 we have the persistence of Jacob wrestling with the angel, “And He said, ‘Let Me go, for the day breaks.’ But he said, ‘ I will not let You go unless You bless me!'”
  5. Submission: Our Lord’s example in the garden is sufficient – “Not my will, but Thine be done.” (Luke 22:42)
    1. Submission: “The condition of being submissive, humble, or compliant; an act of submitting to the authority of control of another.” Merriam-Webster Dictionary
    2. In Scripture “submission” indicates a subjection or subordination. It is learning to live God’s way, which is often a struggle (Romans 7).
    3. It is asking God to teach us to do His will for He is our God (Psa. 142:10)
    4. It is accepting what comes in life, even if it means losing that which might be precious to us (Job 1:21).
    5. In John 18:11 Jesus said, “The cup which my father has given Me, shall I not drink it?” Sometimes in life, the cup is what is best for us, or others (Our Lord in Gethsemane asked that the cup be removed but it wasn’t within God’s will to do so.)
  6. Faith: We must believe that GOD IS; that He is ABLE TO HEAR & ANSWER; and that HE WILL ANSWER if consistent with His own wise purposes and with our best good.
    1. All the promises of God are conditional……”Be it unto you according to your faith.: ” Matt. 9:27-31.
    2. Hebrews 10:22a: “Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith…..“
    3. If answered prayers were not in line with one’s extent of faith…..God would have to answer every prayer and it would mean that He would have to subject Himself to the government of mankind. Most unlikely!
  7. Specificity: Here we are addressing the fact that our prayers must be offered in the name of Christ. Why must this be so?
    1. John 16:23-24: “And in that day you will ask Me nothing. Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you. Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.”
    2. John 15:16: “You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you.“
    3. John 14:13: “And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the father may be glorified in the Son.“
    4. To act in the name of any one is often to act by his authority, and in the exercise of his power. When a pastor marries a couple he closes by saying “I now pronounce you husband and wife by the authority granted to me by the state of ___________.“
    5. Thus the Lord spoke of the works that He had done while upon earth as that which was the “father’s business” (Lk. 2:49); “The works that His Father had given Him to finish” (Jn. 5:36); “The works of Him that had sent Him” (John 9:4).
    6. Thus His work, and His prayers, were in the Father’s authority, and in tune with His will.
    7. Praying in HIS name, subjects us to His will and purposes, not ours! Closing our prayers in “Jesus’ Name,” is not a magical formula but an earnest longing of submission to what He might desire, not what we desire.

Conclusion:

A. In these sessions we have asked the question, “If Prayer Could Speak, What Would It Say?”

  1. I am intimately related to the sovereign Godhead.
  2. I am infinitely involved with the sacred Scriptures.
  3. I am intensely connected with the sanctuary of God.
  4. I am indispensably valuable to the sanctity of the saints.

B. It would say that the biblical pattern for prayer is to God (Matt. 6:9); through Christ (Rom. 1:8); and in the Spirit (Eph. 6:18).

C. I also think that it might say, “I want to be intimately related to you as long as you live, as long as you saturate your soul with the Scriptures, as long as you connect yourself to the house of God, as long as you are sincere, reverent, humble, submissive, asking persistently in faith believing, and bringing all petitions to the Father in Christ’s name.”

D. Prayer has spoken……hopefully, we have listened! If so, we will never be the same!

–Maynard H. Belt