DOES IT PAY TO PRAY?

 

May the Awesome and Mighty Blessings of the ONE TRUE God be on each of as we gather here on this Lord's Day, October 25th, 2020.   "For where two or three have gathered together in My name, I am there in their midst." [So says the Lord in Mat 18:20] LORD JESUS, You are ALWAYS welcomed in our Midst, ALWAYS!

IN OUR CALL TO WORSHIP THIS DAY Let us Bow our heads and join with Franklin Grahamand the rest of our Nation in praying -- O' Mighty God, we are heart broken over the division in this country. Every day we are hearing voices of anger, of hatred, of EVIL and purposeful attempts to turn the masses against You O Father. Against You O Jesus. Against You O Holy Spirit! Against the TRUTH! Father, we pray for divine INTERCESSION directly into the hearts, minds and souls of those who have been swept up in Satan's Net. Lord, INTERCEED as we are powerless to do that which only YOU can do. Cause by divine FIAT that the LIGHT of GOSPEL TRUTH will penetrate deeply into every human heart as this Election reaches it's conclusion. INTERCEED, O Lord, let us un-ball the FIST, relax our anger, dispose of the fear, and PRAY for a return to Brother and Sisterhood and cast the hatred behind, leaving only the TRUTH to remain. This we PRAY with earnest hearts, in the Name of Jesus, AMEN.

Psa 5:2-3  Heed the sound of [Our] cry for help, [Oh] King and my God, For to You We pray.  (3)  In the morning, O LORD, You will hear [Our] voices; In the morning We will order [Our] prayers to You and eagerly watch. AMEN

SERMON SYNOPSIS Prayers. They are physically unseen, but not unfelt. They are heard, are spoken, are read, but cannot be touched or captured in the hand. What is prayer? Have you ever prayed? Do you pray? Does it REALLY pay to pray? Are you praying now? Come, join me as we open in PRAYER:

OPENING PRAYER ABBA, our Majestic Father, we do not know the mechanism that carries our heart-felt prayers to be transmitted from our lips or our thoughts to Your divine ears. We do, however, rely on FAITH and belief in You that our PRAYERS ARE TRULY and instantly received by You O Lord. It is this same FAITH that unlocks the mystery of PRAYERS ANSWERED when You permit us to WITNESS the movement of Your hand in response. As we weather these troubled days, guided by the Holy Spirit, Let TRUTH and LOVE be our constant goals through YOU, O Father, in the Name of Jesus, AMEN. 

 

SERMON In the Garden of Eden, Adam, Eve, Cain and Able had no concept of PRAYER as we know it today. God was there with them. Communication was eyeball to eyeball, mouth to ear. Two major events moved or transformed the dialog in the aftermath of Adam and Eve's great sin, and when Cain killed his brother Able. 

 

The First Scriptural mention of prayer appears in and around Genesis Chapter 4, starting in verse 26. After Adam and Eve mourned the loss of Able, the THIRD child was born of this marriage named SETH. Seth grew up and fathered a male child he named ENOSH. The Bible clearly shows that mankind was horribly divided even then. Cain's lineage embraced the WORLD and its evil ways, SETH and his family line held close to their FAITH in the living God. As the EVIL and TURMOIL grew throughout all earthly residents, The KIN of SETH began to call upon the LORD in a manner we know as PRAYER.

NOAH had to have had a healthy PRAYER dialog with God as he and his family built the ARK. Human confidence in the power of prayer grew and eventually was well established. Our early witnesses, Abraham, Moses, Jacob, Joseph, Gideon, and most certainly DAVID knew and practiced PRAYER with great frequency.

We are of FLESH and BLOOD. God is SPIRIT. We in the flesh communicate directly by Eyeball, Mouth, Ear and physical touch. The SPIRIT is not visible and the whole Mouth to Ear thing with GOD is akin to THOUGHTS. Have you ever touched a THOUGHT? Held a THOUGHT in your hand? Tasted the flavor of a THOUGHT? Of course not. But we cannot deny, WE HAVE THOUGHTS AND THESE PROVOKE ACTION -- THESE THOUGHTS ARE REAL! So is PRAYER.

Prayer that contains the elements for success are ALWAYS answered! ALWAYS. Some might contend that GOD never answers OUR prayer. Many of those may forget that when GOD says WAIT, or, NO! -- these are also an answer. Not the answer you wanted, but it is an answer, none-the-less. If what you asked for is contrary to His will, HIS WORD, or might be harmful to you or the recipient, the answer NO remains an answer! If the timing is not right, GOD will have you wait!

Here are some THOUGHTFUL Elements of Successful Praying:

1. CONTRITION: Being broken hearted, humbled by events, especially when YOU are the cause of the contrition. You call on HIM for help.

2. WHOLE-HEARTEDNESS:   'You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. [ Jer 29:13]

3. FAITH: Mar 11:24  "Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they will be granted you.

4. RIGHTEOUSNESS: Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much. [ Jas 5:16]

5. OBEDIENCE: 1Jn 3:22  ..Whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do the things that are pleasing in His sight.

UUhhh, Mmmmm, WOW! Of all these elements, each equal in importance, this OBEDIENCE is MOST likely the one that will scuttle your prayer. We are very good about ASKING for things. We, however are not very good being OBEDIENT in following the Lord's rules for life;-- As laid out in Holy Scripture. The things that are "pleasing in His sight" are actually acts of simple OBEDIENCE.OBEDIENCE to HIS WORD!

SUMMARY Does it PAY to PRAY? It certainly does! The return is HUGE! The very moment HE permits you to see the movement of HIS hand in bringing about what you have prayed for -- you will be humbled to your knees. It will take your breath away! Only with GOD can we -- simple creatures --have a dialog with HIM our CREATOR! Only with GOD can a creature's pleading be heard, and the prayer fulfilled--Through His mighty Grace and Mercy. IT TRULY PAYS WHEN YOU PRAY!

CLOSING PRAYER O' Father, Lord Jesus, Holy Spirit, we thank You that we have the privilege of having direct, instant communication with You through the Blessing of PRAYER. Your infinite Love and great Mercy has so granted us this important favor. Let us be disciplined and well prepared as we pray. Let us pay particular attention to being OBEDIENT to Your will and commandments at all times, and ask to be equipped and empowered as we plead our case before Your mighty throne. IN the name above all names, Jesus the Christ, we say together, AMEN.

DOXOLOGY

Praise God, from Whom all blessings flow;

Praise Him, all creatures here below;

Praise Him above, Ye heav'n-ly host;

Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost

Amen

BENEDICTION AND CLOSE 1Pe 5:6-7  Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time,  (7)  casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you. Amen and AMEN

SUPPORTING SCRIPTURE Ge 4:26, Psa 5:2-3, Jer 29:13, Mar 11:24

Jas 5:16, 1Jn3:22, 1Pe 5:6-7

NEXT WEEK BELOVED: and if the Lord is willing, We will welcome the start of another month, NOVEMBER 1st. As is our practice, We will share in the Ordinance of the LORD'S SUPPER. Also, next week, just 48 hours after we share the Lord's SUPPER, ELECTION DAY ARRIVES HERE IN THE United States of America. Our Mighty Lord GOD invites each and everyone of you to join and gather here as we PRAY earnestly, and OBEDIENTLY for a righteous outcome for TRUTH and GOODNESS, MERCY and LOVE to be our Prayerful RESULT. Won't you Join us? RIGHT HERE, same time, same place. Until we meet again----Christ Go With You!

HAVE YOU READ YOUR BIBLE TODAY?

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