Exploring the Power and Responsibility of Prayer

Join Harold as he delves into the profound subject of prayer, emphasizing the power it holds and the responsibility we bear to live righteously to make our prayers effective. Harold shares personal anecdotes and biblical references, including the stories of Nehemiah and Elijah, to illustrate how God sometimes uses us as instruments to answer our prayers. This lesson explores how genuine and persistent prayer can lead to miraculous outcomes and encourages viewers to be diligent and ready to be part of God's answer to their own prayers.

00:00 Welcome and Introduction
00:39 Personal Anecdote: A Story from Florida College
02:18 The Power of Prayer: An Introduction
06:40 Biblical Examples of Answered Prayers
13:53 The Importance of Righteousness in Prayer
14:59 Persistence and Faith in Prayer
20:01 Becoming the Answer to Your Own Prayers
22:29 Nehemiah: A Case Study
27:30 Paul's Letters: Answering His Own Prayers
33:18 Conclusion: Be Ready to Serve

Transcript

Thank you for being here. As mentioned, we have some guests with us and we are grateful that you're here. We have those that are joining online and grateful for your joining with us and hope that the things that we say the night will be of value to you. I kind of looking forward to the lesson. I've been over it enough.

The new others worn out. I'm not as excited about it as I was for a while. But I hope it'll help you and, and give you some insight into some of God's working and actions. In my last year at Florida College, I well, my mom and dad bought a house and moved to a different place. And I never really dwelt there.

I, I remember the last year I was back there Thanksgiving and Christmas, and therefore a short time after I got outta Florida, but I went to Arkansas where Bev was pretty quick and found a job and started preaching. Not soon after that, but I did come home and I preached in Cordell for about four and a half years.

During that four and a half years, I had a five minute radio program at 7 25 in the morning, and a lot of times I would go by the house and drink coffee with my dad and mom sometime before going on back to my house. But what I want you to know is if you walked in that house and the front door, you'd walk in and to your right, the dining room was there.

You were fairly close to it. It was not very far between the entranceway and the living room and the actual dining room. And it wasn't a wall really, it was just an archway. And if you went in that dining room and then you looked over to your left, there'd be kind of a square type hall, and some bedrooms came off of it.

The bathroom came off. Right to the left. When you first went in that hall, there was a tall, skinny bookcase, and above that bookcase, there was a plaque that read. Prayer changes things and indeed it can, prayer can change things, and I tell you that because I want to talk with you tonight about the subject of prayer.

And I want you to know as we we talk about it I'm not using the PowerPoint again, I'll tell you that. And so I want you to get things right. And so if you take a note, here's the title, but you gotta wait a minute because when I first thought about it, I was gonna call it, you are sometimes the answer to your own prayers.

We'll talk about that in the lesson. That's one of the main points we'll talk about that God can use you to answer your own prayers, but I thought, well, but there's more to the lesson, so maybe I'll just call it you and prayer. And then I thought, well, that leaves out God. So the lesson is entitled You, God and Prayer.

I've told you before that I used to score low on those academic tests. The reason was that they'd give me something to read and I'd read it and they'd say, now what's the best title? Now they're asking me what I think and I tell 'em what I think and they marked it wrong. I'm sorry. Doesn't make fair to me.

But anyway, you now have the thought process. So why we're calling this lesson you and God and Prayer. And I want to start out by talking about how that you have great power available to you in prayer. Now, I, I want to again, point out to you that I said that you have great power available to you. I didn't say you had great power in you.

The power is in God, but he makes that power available to us in prayer. I want you to look in your Bibles, if you would, for a moment to the book of Ephesians and the third chapter, and look if you would, at verse 20, Ephesians three and verse 20. And Paul writes and says, now to him, who is able to do exceedingly abundant above all that we ask or think according to the power that works in us.

To him be the glory in the church by Jesus Christ to all generations forever, endeavored. He's talking about God and he says to him, who is able to do, not just do, but exceedingly, abundantly above what we ask or think. So he's saying God has the power not only to do what we think we might do, but he has the power to do abundantly more than what we might think to ask.

Turn back, if you would, for a moment to the book of Ephesians in the first chapter, and we'll come back to this a little bit later. But right in the middle of this first chapter, Paul writes and he makes mention of a prayer that he is saying for the Ephesians, and I want you to look at verse 19. He's talking about God, he says.

And is the exceedingly greatness of his power toward us who believe according to the working of his mighty power, which he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seeded him at the right hand in heavenly places. This is the power of God that is working in us. And Paul says, this is the kind of power that he has, that he had the power.

To raise Jesus from the dead. I don't know if you've ever even concentrated to how much power it must take to to bring somebody else alive, but here's Jesus that's been abused and crucified and put in a tomb, and God can raise him. He has that kind of power. He's telling us this is the power that God makes available unto us that kind of power.

Think for a moment about some of the prayers that have been asked in the scriptures and answered. I'm sure that me, that there are some that just stick out in your mind of answered prayers and maybe some of 'em don't take a lot of power. We wouldn't think, but that, that God cares and that he does these kind of things.

Lemme just give you a couple of them. You remember in Genesis, the 24th chapter that Abraham asked his servant, presumably e. To go back to his homeland and to find a bride for Isaac. And so the servant goes, and let me just turn over there and read part of it for you. Go Genesis, the 24th chapter, Genesis 24, and we'll start in verse 12.

He says, and this is the words of the servant, he says, then he said, oh Lord God of my master Abraham, please give me success this day and show kindness to my master Abraham. Behold, here I stand by the well of water and the daughters of the men of the city are coming to draw water. Now let it be that the young woman to whom I say, please let me let down your picture that I may drink.

And she says, drink. And I will also give you your camel's drink. Let her be the one you have appointed for your servant Isaac. And by this, I will know that you have shown kindness to my master. And it happened before he had finished speaking. Behold, Rebecca, who was born to Bethel or Bethus of Malka, the wife of Nho, Abraham's brother, came out with her picture on her shoulders.

Now, the young woman was very beautiful to behold the virgin, no man had known her. And she went down to the, the whale to fill her pitcher and came up and the servant ran to meet her and said, please let me drink a little water from your pitcher. So she said, drink my Lord. Then she quickly let her picture down to give her hand and gave give him a drink.

And when she had finished giving him a drink, she said, I'll draw water up for your Campbells also until they have finished drinking. Isn't that amazing? Here's a servant. He has something to ask of God. Ask a sign and it says before he gets through talking. Here's the answer to the prayer being given.

Think about the Book of One Kings and the 18th chapter and beginning in about verse 21 is where we'd start what we're talking about. But this is when the king had or, or Elijah had. Told the king that it wasn't going to rain and it didn't rain for a number of years, and then he went back and told the king that it would rain.

But you remember that at the same time, there were 450 prophets of the Beal. And you know, I just says he's the only prophet of God, but he challenges these prophets in a contest. He said, let's go and take two oxen. You take one and I'll take one. Let's get 'em ready for sacrifice, and then you put yours on this, on the altar, and then you call to your God, that would be Baal, and see if the answers.

It started early in the morning and, and they're still praying at noon, and, and Elijah kind of says, Hey, you know, maybe you need to call louder or something. And so they begin to cut themselves and call louder and still no answer. And now it's time for the evening sacrifice. And finally Elijah says, okay, set the, the altar up and put the oxen on it.

And I called and he called. In fact, before he called, he said, pour water on on the sacrifice and pour more water on the sacrifice, and then pour more water on the sacrifice until the trenches it said were full. And then he called and immediately fire came down and consumed those. That's power and prayer that here he would pray.

God consumed this sacrifice. Show these people that your God is not a selfish p prayer where he just wants to show his power. It is rather that he wants to show them that God is real. And God answers that prayer in a very vivid way, if you would, and you can think of others. I, I know not long ago we talked about Hannah, who had been barren and then she.

Praise. And she has a child that being Samuel, you know, and I thought about Jesus and, and I don't wanna leave him out when we talk about prayer, but I, I think the problem I, I thought about most of all, is I. You don't really hear him expressing. A lot of times God do this, do that. He'd just say, arise and walk.

And the lang man would walk or he'd touch the, the per dead person and they'd, they'd arise up or whatever. But look, if you would, in the Book of John in the 12th chapter for a moment you'll find in verse 20, John 1220. Now there were certain Greeks among those who came to worship at the feast. They came to Philip, who was beside, was from Bested of Galilee and asked him, saying, sir, we wish to see Jesus.

And Philip also told Andrew, and in turn, Andrew and Philip told Jesus. And then you have some different words that are being spoken about Jesus. He's talking about his death and so forth. That's that's about to come. And when you, you get on down further verse 28, it says, Jesus said, father, glorify your name.

Then a voice came from heaven saying, I have both glorified it and it will and will glorify it again. Therefore, the people who stood by heard it. Said it was thunder and others said it is an angel has spoken to him. Here's a case where Jesus says, God glorify me and God answers that prayer with a vocal.

This is my son type thing, and people heard it. There's power there and so I want you to know that there is power available. Our prayers. James, the fifth chapter in verse 16, I'm sure you remember these words. James says, the effective fervent prayers of a righteous man avail much the effective fervent prayers of a righteous man avail much.

And that's what we're trying to say, that God has the power to answer our prayers. That's really also the second point. The, the fervent or the effective fervent prayers of a right man avail much. First point is that you have power available unto you. Second point I want you to know is that you have a responsibility in how you live.

If you want to have effective prayer. And in this you can even see, he says the, the effective fervent prayers of a righteous man avail much. I know that Reagan has talked to us several times about the parables of, of fervent prayers and. Persistent prayers and there's stories like the Book of Luke in the 11th chapter in verse five through 11, where you have a widow that is going to somebody and, and persistently asking, and so much so that the man really not want to get up and answer the, the widow particularly, but it just knows that it's a bother for her to keep on asking him.

And it's not saying that that's a bother for us, but God's just saying, look, I. She's persistent. That man answers. What were we going to do if we pray to a good God and we're persistent? Or you can look at the book of 11 or Luke in the 18th chapter in verse one through eight. And you have a similar story where somebody is coming before the judge and the judge finally answers, not because he really cares about the person that's asking.

He just tired of them asking. But the point being made, if somebody that's unrighteous. Would hear a prayer or hear a petition and answer it, how much more will God who loves us and cares for us? If we're persistent in our prayers, how much more will God hear and God answer our prayers is the idea. You remember that we need to be fervent and he tells us these things that if you pray fervently.

These things will come and pass. You may be wondering, well, why do I have to be persistent? I could ask, why do you have to ask anyway? God knows everything to begin with, doesn't he? But sometimes maybe God just wants us to show him we care, or this is something that really matters to us. You know, he knows we need saving, but he's going to let us.

Show that we recognize we need to be saved and called him and, and he knows what we need, but he wants us to know that we are dependent upon him and that we can depend upon him. And so he wants us to call upon him and he wants us to be persistent in our prayers also sometimes. And so the, the fervent prayers.

And then secondly, note, he says, the fervent prayers of a righteous man avails much. That just means you're doing what you're supposed to in Christ Jesus. You're not living a life of sinfulness, but you're trying to live as God directed us to. That's the righteousness. You remember in John the night chapter that Jesus heals a man that has been blind puts.

S on his face or puts a fiddle in his face, tells him to go wash and he's washed and and he can see. And then the scribes and the Pharisees begin to say, you know, who did this? And this man would say, well, Jesus did. And they begin to say, well, who is this Jesus? He's a sinner. And the blind man answered and said, we know that God hears not sinners.

Now what he was saying is if Jesus was bad, like you saying he was, God wouldn't be listening to him. He wouldn't have the power to, to open my eyes and so forth. But that statement that God doesn't hear the prayers of sinners if, if we're rebelling and going to keep on rebelling, God is not under obligation to hear our prayers and to answer our prayers.

But he says his ears are open to those that are righteous. That he will answer our prayers on those occasions. And one other thing we need to know is that we, we need to be men of faith. Jesus told some one time he, he saw a fig tree and it didn't have figs. He cursed it and they went on and came back by the next day and somebody saw it and said, look, Lord, the, the fig tree, it's withered.

And, and Jesus told him, he said, you know. If you believe you can do all things, you can say, this mountain, be moved and it'll be moved and you can curse the fig tree and it, it can die. And he's not trying to tell us that we have powers to go move mountains just by ourselves or, or just to see if he'll move 'em or whatever.

But his point is that God is able and that God wants us to believe. In other places, like the Book of James, he said, if we doubt, then don't expect it. We need to to believe that God has power, that he loves us, that he cares for us, and that if it's the right thing, that God's going to do it for us. And so we need to understand that one.

When we pray there is a great amount of power available to us. Secondly, we need to make sure our lives are such that God will want to answer our prayers and give us whatever it is that we're asking for. But then the third point, we need to also realize that sometimes God may be using us to answer our own prayers.

Probably I started to say 10 years, probably more than that, probably 20 years ago maybe. I, I preached a sermon on prayer, and in the, in the course of that lesson, I talked about two little boys that were going to school and they realized they were late, and one of 'em said, well, let's pray. And the other one said, well, let's be running while we do it.

And then I talked about a man who was praying for his neighbors. And some mothers that were sick said, please help them. They're sick. They need help. He said, I thought about it and he said, I could fix 'em a meal or I could go help them do something. And I thought that time and, and I think probably the first time that I really remember using the phrase, he was the answer to his own prayers.

And that stuck with me. And I, I've thought about that phrase. He is the answer to his own prayers for a long time. I told Brett. Before services. I can remember when I was in Fort Smith, somebody at once asked, I told him I wasn't gonna say it, but I'm gonna say it. And somebody asked me, he said, how long does it take to, to get up a sermon?

And I told him, I said, well, this particular sermon, I know it's been at least seven years because I had heard a sermon on John about Jesus asking Peter Loveth thou me. I just didn't think it really got to the meat of what Jesus was doing. And so now I've moved to Fort Smith, I've been there seven years, and I've decided, okay, I've got something to say about Jesus.

Question Peter, do you love me? You know, I love you Lord, and so forth. And so I told the audience, I said, you know, they ask sometimes how long it takes to get up a sermon. Well, this one's been seven years in the making. I got through and Brett said, dad, I don't think I would tell people it took seven years to get up a sermon.

He said, what if they don't like it? And so we run into risk to tell you that this has probably been 20 years in the making since I first had this thought. And now we're continuing on a little bit. But I do wanna suggest to you that if you look in the scriptures, you can find examples where people become the answer to their own prayers.

Go back if you would for a moment to the book of Nehemiah. And you remember that Nehemiah is set during the time after the children of VI Israel had been in the captivity and after some of 'em had returned from captivity and Nehemiah was a cup bearer for the king in and one of the men come back this way.

He's been to Jerusalem and Nehemiah asked him, he said, what's it like in Jerusalem? And the man gave a really bad report of how the walls were broken down and all those kind of things to the point that it, it really bothered Nehemiah. And so

Nehemiah began to pray in verse four, chapter one, he says. So it was when I heard these words that I sat down and wept and mourned. For many days. I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven. I said, I pray, Lord God of heaven. How? Oh, great and awesome God. You keep your covenant and mercy with those who love you and observe your commandments.

Please let your ear be attended and your eyes open, that you may hear the prayers of your servant, which I pray before you now, day and night for the children of Israel, your servants and confess the sins of the, of the children of Israel, which we have sinned against you. Both my father's house and I have sinned.

And so he's praying for this and he wants something done. He, he's concerned about those Jews in Jerusalem and about the city of Jerusalem. And so he's wanting help. So you look down in chapter two and he talks about being in with the King Es at that time and, and pouring wine. And it says that the king notice.

That his countenance was wrong, that it wasn't like it usually was. He says, I had never been sad in his presence before. Therefore, the king said to me, why is your face sad since you are not sick? He says, this is nothing but sorrow of heart. So I became dreadfully afraid. I mean, he's talking to the king, and the king doesn't like his countenance.

He's beginning to get fearful. And then he says. He says to the king, may the king live forever. Why should my face not be sad when the city, the place of my father's tomb lie, waste and its gates are burned with fire? Then the king said to me, what do you request? So I prayed to God of heaven. I don't know how much time's going on, but it seems like it's pretty quick fire.

What's wrong? Well, why shouldn't I be sadden the city that I came from or my family's city is all burned? Well, what do you want me to do? I'm gonna pray. Then tells him, let me go. And the king grants him the time. Ask him a little bit about how long are you gonna be gone? But he tells Nehemiah, you go and you be over it and see about building this, this city up.

If you're familiar with the rest of the book of, of Nehemiah, you know, that's exactly what happened, that Nehemiah goes back, he organizes the people, they get busy and work and rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. God answered Nehemiah's prayer. Nehemiah is saying, God do something city and God sends Nehemiah himself to be the one to oversee and rebuild that city.

Nehemiah is the answer to his own prayers on this occasion. I was reading a book, and this is the second part of this sermon that helped me, I guess, to say, okay, we're going to preach it. But I, I was reading a book called Discipling and it's about trying to just be more bold and telling people, Hey, let me tell you about Jesus and so forth, but he made.

Do you ever realize, and I, and I did not realize in John nine, that Jesus talks about the, the harvest is ready white and to harvest, but the laborers are few. You know what the next chapter starts with? Jesus sending out his apostles to preach the gospel after recognizing and saying the labors are few.

He then sends his disciples out to begin preaching to those people.

That's the answer to his prayer or the prayer that he's saying we should sing. Sometime ago, I studied the book of Ephesians in depth, and if you're looking at the book of Ephesians, again, go back there if you want to, to the book of Ephesians in the first chapter.

And look again to that part where we're talking about his prayer about verse. 15 is where it starts. He says, therefore, I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and your love for all saints, do not cease to give. Thanks for you making mention of you in my prayers. I know this. The God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him, that the eyes of your understanding being enlightened, that you may know what is the hope of his calling?

What are the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints? What is the exceedingly greatness of his power toward us who believe according to the working of his mighty power? You know what you'll find if you study the book of Ephesians, that the book of Ephesians is Paul trying to get these people to be exactly what he's praying for.

Where are they gonna get the wisdom from? The inspiration of the writings that he's doing? Where are they gonna find the power? He tells 'em, you are gonna find that power in God and talks about the abundant power in God. Over and over. It just seems to me like, in fact, I did a lectureship in, or not a lectureship, spoke on the lectureship in Tyler.

It was during COVID because I did it from my office back here and did it in Zoom. But they asked me to talk about Ephesians, and I started it by saying, if you look at the prayer, you will find that the letter is the answer to the prayer. That if they get what Paul is teaching, they will get what he was praying for.

And so it again, with me became Paul's letter is the answer to his prayer. And so again, you just keep seeing over and over that sometimes God uses the very one that's praying to be the answer to that prayer or to accomplish that thing Now. If you're like me, you kind of maybe think, well, that's kinda strange, isn't it?

I pray to God and, and God uses me, but let me share some thoughts with you that that came to my mind. When we pray, aren't we striving very hard to pray according to the will of God? And what do you want to do with your life other than live it according to the will of God? If I'm praying for something that I think is according to God's will does it not make sense that I'm going to be really enthused about that or or interested in that thing and that it might be that God would just say, well, that's a good thing.

You do that. Or we think sometimes that, and we may mention this, that we need to be people of belief when we pray, pray, believing, and I don't think that means that we. Can just know that we're going to get everything that we, we want. I think there are some things that we know that we can have because God specifically tells us that, but there's some things that, that we don't know exactly what God's will is, and we just have to pray and, and leave it to God and say, you know, your will be done.

It doesn't come out like we want. We know that either God has something better or that we just need to rethink it all together, but most of the time we're going to play, pray, believing. But as it occurred to you that faith is accompanied by works and that if we're praying, believing that the natural thing is that if, if I can do something, then I will try and, and help that along to do it.

And then the third thing I would suggest to you, have you ever thought about the fact that a lot of God's prayers are answered by people probably know where we're going? You people, aren't you? So isn't it logical that if God's going to answer our prayer by people, that he might even choose us to be one of those people?

To answer that prayer? Let me challenge your thinking for a moment. You ever played prayed for wisdom? I'm sure we have, but. Doesn't understand the reason that if I'm going to pray for wisdom, that I ought to be looking at the book, reading the book, and that God might direct my attention to a certain part that gives me that wisdom or, or even in my association with Christians, that he might bring me to somebody or somebody into my presence that can give me the wisdom that I'm praying for.

Have you ever. Prayed for good marriage. Has that occurred to you that you may need to be changing and that you might be a part of what is needed in order to have the good marriage and that you would be the answer to your prayer? Or like the example that we mentioned earlier about the man who is praying about his neighbors who are sick and the Lord help them and he realizes, hey.

I have a responsibility to people around me, and so he gets up and helps. Think about your prayers, and here's the bottom line of it is, and what I want out of this, I want first of all, you to be willing to be the answer to your own prayer. You may not be the answer to your own prayer and, and God's not promising that you are going to answer all your prayers.

Yourself, but be willing to be the answer to your prayer. If you're praying something the worthwhile, then it'd be worthwhile if you are willing to do it. And the second thing, don't just be willing. Be ready to answer the prayer. Prepare yourself to serve the Lord so that whatever it is that that you're praying or other people praying, that God can use you to glorify His great the holy name.

In the book of Isaiah in the sixth chapter, it's not really a prayer, but it is an occasion where somebody ask in presence of God, either God or the presence of God or Cher bis Will mentioned, or Sheriff Bims or mentioned, but they said, who's going to go for? And Isaiah speaks up and says, Lord, send me, make that your prayer.

Be sincere when you do it. When he asks, who are we going to send? Be ready and willing to say, Lord, send me and he can use this. Have you ever prayed, God saved me? Well, I can tell you, he's not going to just zap you and save you apart from you believing. Repenting and being baptized, rising up the wall of life.

He's not going to save you if you're been Christian, but just going back into sin until you repent. But who's gonna have to make that decision, I believe who's gonna make that decision? I'm going to be baptized in Christ Jesus. Who's gonna make that decision? That's who's going to stray. Now's the time for me to turn and come back.

It's gonna be you. And so if you've been praying, say Me Lord. You could be the answer to your own prayer, or at least God could use you to answer your own prayer. And so if you're subject to the invitation, we can help you this evening, don't you come us together, we stand this.

I.