Robert McLaughlin Bible Ministries
The Divine promises to those who pray, rest upon the fulfillment of certain conditions.
Wednesday, July 18, 2001
1. We must have confidence in prayer as a practical power and legitimate powerful weapon, HEB 11:6
2. We must be direct and open in the presence of God, LUK 11:9-13.
3. Two of the most important factors in prayer are “time and method.”
4. You must beware of replacing “prayer time” with something that you consider to be spiritual.
Big foxes go after the fruit of the vine, but little foxes break the tender vine branches.
If unwatched or unguarded now, the little things can ruin the spiritual life.
Every small appearance of the old life; bad habits, losing your fervency; becoming familiar = the little foxes.
5. The word of God and prayer are to be intimately united, EPH 6:17-19.
a. Knowing the Bible intellectually without being concerned with application and experience.
b. Striving after the experience in prayer without knowing how to intellectually and Biblically pray.
2CO 3:6 “for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.”
In prayer many people look for the Spirit to illuminate them with some message, some vision or some emotion!
1CO 14:15 “I shall pray with the spirit and I shall pray with the mind also”
PSA 9:1 I will give thanks to the Lord with all my heart;
GEN 32:26 “I will not let you go unless you bless me.”
Turn to Luke 11
Our Lord used this passage to indicate that a stronger tie exists between God and man than between friend and friend.
The most outstanding enemy in prayer is lack of knowledge of what we are in Christ, what He is in us, what He did for us, and our standing and legal rights before the throne.
LUK 11:5-8 – because he was seeking for someone else and did not stop seeking for someone else, the man who was resting came down to give him bread.
COL 4:3 “Praying at the same time for us as well, that God may open up to us a door for the word.”
JAM 4:2 “You do not have because you do not ask.”
HEB 11:6 “He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.”
6. We must be very precise and definite in our requests.
He gives the Holy Spirit, because the disciples were not indwelt by the Holy Spirit at this time.
JOH 20:22 And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.”
MAT 7:11 “If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your Father who is in heaven give WHAT IS GOOD to those who ask Him!”
“Good things” = 1. necessities such as bread 2. luxuries such as fish.
Our Lord intended to convey the idea of similarity between an egg and a scorpion and bread and a stone.
7. We must offer our supplications and petitions to God in real genuine faith, MAR 11:24.
HEB 11:1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
“shall not doubt” = aor-pass-subj – diakrinoo = to receive doubt, or to waver because of not walking by faith, but by sight.