“Petition in Prayer”

Scripture: Matthew 7:7-11, etal

Prayer should never be complicated or difficult. In truth, it is nothing more than a conversation with a close and cherished friend, which we do all the time. We share our joys with them, we can ask for their help in times of struggle, we tell them just how important a relationship with them is for us.
And that is what we tell the Lord in prayer. We’ve considered our praise for all that God is for us, we’ve seen the importance of confessing our sins and repenting of our love of them, we have given our thanks to God for what he has done for us, and for all that he will bring to our lives in the years to come.

Today we consider the last vital aspect of our prayers – the “S” of “ACTS” - our supplication, the requests that we raise up in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ, and why we have the responsibility to give our needs and desires over to the Lord.

Read Matthew 7:7-11

The important issue in these commandments is that they are unconditional. There is never a hint of “If …”, or “But …” – there are only “Ands”. The only thought that may even hint of a condition is that we have to ask, seek, or knock first, and then God can provide his response. Isn’t it interesting, that we only have to take the first step toward the Lord, and it is then that he can care for our every need. We don’t have to share the load, we don’t have to start the overhaul of our life all by ourselves, we don’t have to plan the extensive details of what is needed – all we have to do is express our need, and the Lord will care for the rest!

Of course, in John 14:13-14, we read that in prayer, we are to ask in the name of the Lord. That doesn’t mean that we simply lift up the name Jesus – it means that we are to ask in Jesus’ way. If we ask for a blessing that is a sin, or is something that Jesus spoke against, it may as well never have been asked! But in his way, all things are possible.

Prayer is not a shopping list of our desires – it is lifted up in expectation that God can and will respond to whatever we ask, seek, or knock for, and that we are totally dependent upon this gracious and benevolent God. Jesus then cements his teaching with an analogy from human life, when he explains that if parents want only the best for their families, and will only give the best to their children, just imagine what your heavenly Father will do for you if you only ask! Bread and fish were the basic sources of nourishment for people who lived in the Galilee, and the Lord’s blessings will bring the best spiritual nourishment to the lives of all who will seek him as their heavenly Father.

Ask for his blessings, seek his way and his guidance, and knock on the door of the Lord’s life, seeking to enter into his grace and eternity, asking for only the best that he can bring to our lives.

Read John 16:23-24

When John writes “In that day…”, he is referring to the coming day, at that time, of his resurrection. That is the beginning of the era of God’s grace, and will not end until the day of his return. And when we read that “You will no longer ask me anything”, it is a reflection on the day when he once again comes bodily into our world, and all will be revealed and understood. But as we wait for that day, we have the power of the Holy Spirit available in whatever we do, if it is offered to the glory, and in the name, of Jesus.

Think about this for a moment – ministry and mission can always happen with the guidance, the authority, the wisdom, and the vision of our Almighty God, if we only ask him to be with us, to lead us, to inspire us in the name and grace of Jesus! But when John writes that we have not yet asked for anything in Jesus’ name, we need to understand that we are being challenged to examine the strength and commitment of our faith.
The question before us today, then, is this – when we pray, and when we proclaim the name of Jesus, how confident are we that it is going to make any difference in our life? When we speak the name of Jesus in prayer, seeking his creative spirit for our life and love, do we truly trust that his way will work to our benefit? When we “knock” on his door of faith and salvation, do we really want to enter his presence, or are we satisfied to remain out on the doorstep, looking in?

“Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete!” Are each of us ready, are we anxious, to receive the joy that prayer can bring?

Read Ephesians 3:20-21

Can you imagine the power that this passage describes for us? Beyond anything we can ask for, beyond anything we can even imagine, beyond our wildest dreams, far beyond every human ability or understanding? That is who our Incredible God is and that is what he wants to do for us! And his power and vision and purpose and plan are all at our disposal – IF we are willing to let him take the lead.

Consider the mission trip that we all were privileged to be part of this year. The team was formed with the intent of reaching out to people with the gospel and love of Jesus. We thought that this was supposed to happen in Haiti, but that, apparently, wasn’t the Lord’s plan. It reminds me of Paul’s plan to go to Asia, but the Spirit revealed the need for him to go to Macedonia instead. (Acts 16:6-10) Our plans for Haiti were changed, literally at the last minute, to a destination in Mexico. The time frame was identical, the mission was identical, the cost was almost identical, except for the cost of changing flight arrangements with only a week to go, and the DCI mission needed us on those same dates.

And what was the result of the change? The supplies that you and the other churches donated far exceeded our plans, and instead of having 20 suitcases of school supplies, and health products, and baby needs, and all the other items that we received, we had 33 full suitcases. The Vacation Bible School that we hosted reached 3 times as many children as we had planned, not to mention the many parents who came. You gave us enough school supplies to bless 50 school children instead of 30, and they received your gifts 1 week before the school year started (which we didn’t know about ahead of time!). 270 reading glasses were distributed instead of the 200 we had planned on. Baby clothing and health need donations were so great that we were able to set the items out for mom’s to choose on three or four different occasions. Our evening evangelism walks in two villages reached more people and families than we could count, and this, and so many of our other activities, opened the door to provide for some basic needs of the people of the Yucatan, to share the good news of the Lord with them, and to lead countless folks to salvation in Jesus Christ.
Was any of this our plan? If it had been, we would have been told that we were dreaming!

And how about the Gibson Corners church’s mission to Ecuador 20 years ago. Pastor Gary had challenged them to begin praying for what the Lord would have them do, but which they couldn’t do! The small rural church obediently prayed, and then went to Central America without a complete understanding of what they would be doing. Over a 10 year period, they built a three story school, which at last report, was educating nearly 250 children, including 35 or so who are emotionally challenged, with specific classes to help them in life. Fund raising, or at least the formal part of it, was through spaghetti dinners and some outreach presentations, but a majority of the hundreds of thousands of dollars came from other churches, and from other denominations, who had been inspired by the Holy Spirit to partner with them, including an Assembly of God Church in Brazil, who are now administering the school programs, and who, because of growth in the school, is considering a project to add an fourth story to the original building. And the initial project, through Godly vision, was designed to accommodate as many as five stories, which, by God’s grace, could come in handy in a few more years!
Was this the church’s initial plan? Not even close!

And the Lord is being glorified all the time through the efforts of faithful, obedient people who believe that their simple steps in faith, their belief in asking, their trust in seeking, and their expectations when they knock, are all that are required to open up the possibility of power and majesty and glory for those who have yet to come to a saving knowledge of Christ Jesus.

Please pray with me:

Precious Lord, we are told that if we but pray in your name, that the possibilities of ministry and mission are infinite. In your word, we read that we can do all things through our Lord Jesus who strengthens us, but we can never imagine how glorious and how great your “all” is until we trust enough to step out in your way. We praise you Lord, that our “all” is only the beginning of yours, and that in your Divine “ALL”, that your glory will rest upon the multitudes of earth.
Lord Jesus, help us to believe, help us to trust that by simply asking, and seeking, and knocking at your holy door, that we will see your “ALL” at work through us. Glory and honor to you, in all that our humble lives do, and in all that we can’t even imagine. In your name, in your way, in your word, and always in your life.
Lord Jesus, in your marvelous promise of hope for eternity. Amen