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PRAYER
Berean Tape 74TL-11 - side 2 - Techniques of Prayer:
"Prayer is talking to God. It is speaking to God as we would speak to our earthly fathers. It is coming to God trustingly with your sins, your problems and your needs. It's bringing to God whatever it is you want to ask Him about, the direction you need and the requests that you have....
There are certain techniques by which we live as Christians. If you do not use these techniques, your Christian life will falter. One of them, for example, is the confession of known sins, [1 Jn 1:9]; another one here is a life of prayer. The Christian who does not pray is neglecting a major technique of the Christian life and will become eventually an ineffective believer. The Holy Spirit plays a major role because the Bible tells us that the Holy Spirit edits our prayers...
[Ro 8:26-27]:
(v. 26)"And in the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words
(v. 27) and He Who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.]
[Jude 20]:
"But you, beloved, [believers, v.1] building yourselves up on your most holy faith; praying in the Holy Spirit..."
"Praying" = this is the Greek word...
[proseuchomenoi = nom. pl. m. pres. mid./pass. dep. part.]
...it is in the present tense. A verb in the present tense... means that it's to be a constant experience of the Christian life:
"pray without ceasing" is the Scriptural admonition [I Thes 5:17]....
You do it yourself - you don't go to a priest or some immediary or some great religious leader and say, 'Pray for me.' Now it is not wrong for you to ask other believers to join with you in prayer for a specific need that you have. But be sure that you are simply asking them to join you before God in that prayer and not asking them to do your praying for you. You are perfectly qualified... as believers to do your own praying...
It is a participle which means that it is a... divine principle which is here being declared..."
[Ro 8:8]:
"And those who are in the flesh [unbelievers or carnal believers] cannot please God."
[Compare Isa 64:6]:
(v. 6) "For all of us have become like one who is unclean,
And all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment,
and all of us wither like a leaf,
And our iniquities, like wind, take us away."
[Jer 17:9]:
(v. 9) "The heart is more deceitful than all else
And is desperately sick;
Who can understand it?"
[Ro 6:20]:
(v. 20) "When you were slaves to sin...[i.e., when you were unbelievers, cp. Ro 8:1] you were free from the control of righteousness."
Compare Job 14:1-4; Ps 51:5.
3) THEREFORE THE PRAYERS OF THE UNRIGHTEOUS ARE NOT ACCEPTABLE TO GOD NOR ARE THEY EFFECTUAL:
Unbelievers and carnal believers cannot please God with their thoughts, words or deeds. Therefore anything done relative to salvation, prayer requests, works of any sort to please, even to obey God, etc., will not be effectual until unbelievers have trusted alone in Christ alone as Savior, (Jn 3:16, Ro 3:20-24); and believers have confessed their known sins, (I Jn 1:9; Ps 32:5; Pr 28:13).
There is precedent for this in the Old Testament when God refused to hear the prayers of Israel when she turned away from God to worship idols:
[Pr 28:9]:
(v. 9) "He who turns away his ear from listening to the Law, Even his prayer is an abomination."
[Isa 59:2]:
(v. 2) "But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, And your sins have hid His face from you, so that He does not hear."
[Isa 1:14-15]:
(v. 14) "I [God] hate your [pagan, i.e., idol worshipping] new moon festivals and your appointed feasts, They have become a burden to Me. I am weary of bearing them.
(v. 15) So when you spread out your hands in prayer, I will hide My eyes from you, Yes, even though you multiply prayers, I will not listen. Your hands are full of bloodshed."
[Compare Ps 66:18-19]:
(v. 18) "If I [David] regard wickedness in my heart, The LORD will not hear;
[So David, a believer, accounted to God for his sins through confession: [Ps 32:5]:
"I acknowledged my sin to Thee And my iniquity I did not hide; I said, 'I will confess my transgressions to the LORD'' And Thou didst forgive the guilt of my sin."
Thus opening the prayer door once more]:
[Ps 66:18-19 cont.]:
(v. 18 cont.) "If I [David] regard wickedness in my heart, The LORD will not hear;
(v. 19) But certainly God has heard; He has given heed to the voice of my prayer."
Believers in the New Testament age are also liable to have their prayers hindered for various reasons:
[Compare I Peter 3:7]:
"You husbands likewise, live with your wives in an understanding way, as with a weaker vessel, since she is a woman; and grant her honor as a fellow-heir of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered."
[Compare Jas 1:6-7]:
(v. 6) "But let him ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea driven and tossed by the wind.
(v. 7) For let not that man expect that he will receive anything from the Lord."
[Compare Jas 4:3]:
"You ask and do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures."
[Compare Heb 11:6]:
"And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him."
4) GOD BESTOWS BLESSINGS ON ALL MANKIND IN ACCORDANCE:
b) IN ANSWER TO THE PRAYERS OF FAITHFUL BELIEVERS FOR OTHERS
Objectors to the idea that only faithful believers' prayers are heard by God point to examples where God blesses all mankind and answers the prayers of all men - no matter what their state of sin and unbelief.
However, Scripture says that God pours blessings down on all men - some more deserving than others, some are believers, some not, some pray and some don't:
[Mt 5:45]:
"For He [God] causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous."
And God is not willing that any perish...
[2 Pet 3:9]:
"The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance."
Cp. I Tim 2:3-4
So God, in His sovereignty, pursues all men. The Son draws all men unto Himself...
[Jn 12:32]:
"And I [Jesus] if I be lifted up from the earth, [on the cross, v. 33] will draw all men to Myself."
...so that all men might have a chance to believe in His son unto eternal life. And God, in His sovereignty, Who controls all things, (Col 1:16-17), provides circumstances for individuals according to His will, (not ours), so that He will accomplish His sovereign purposes. Some of these circumstances are blessings to individuals, whether or not faithful believers. Some circumstances are not blessing at all. Some coincide with the prayers of faithful believers and unbelievers alike, some do not. But there are no exceptions to what God has decreed in His Word. God says that He answers only the prayers of those He views as righteous through their faith in His Son first unto eternal life and continuing on in their Christian walk.
5) THEREFORE ONE MUST HAVE ONE'S SINS ACCOUNTED FOR IN ORDER FOR ONE'S PRAYERS TO BE LISTENED TO:
[Pr 15:29]:
"The LORD is far from the wicked,
But He hears the prayer of the righteous."
[Jas 5:16b]:
"The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much."
First of all, an individual cannot be considered righteous at all until he, as an unbeliever, has appropriated the righteousness of God through faith alone in Christ alone unto eternal life and become a believer, because his own righteousness falls short of acceptability by God.
Once an individual becomes a believer, numerous privileges are given to him by God, not the least of which is prayer. And in order for an individual to pray, he must have access to God. This is not provided for him by God until he has become a child of God - a believer - through faith alone in Christ alone:
[Jn 1:12]:
(v. 12) "But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name.."
[Eph 2:18]:
(v. 18) "For through Him [Jesus Christ] we both [Jews and Gentiles, vv. 11, 12, 15, 17] have our access in one Spirit to the Father."
[Compare Eph 3:10-12]:
(v. 10) "In order that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known through the church to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places.
(v. 11) This was in accordance with the eternal purpose which He carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord,
(v. 12) in Whom [God] we have boldness and confident access through faith in Him [Jesus Christ]."
[So individuals have access to God as a result of their one time expression of faith alone in Christ alone as Savior. Unbelievers, who by definition have not yet expressed their faith in Christ as Savior, do not have this access to God in prayer or in anything except condemnation, (Jn 3:18).
[Compare Jn 14:6]:
(v. 6) "Jesus said to him, 'I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me."
No one comes to the Father in prayer or in anything except through the Lord Jesus Christ: First step: Faith alone in Christ alone as Savior, (Jn 3:16). Then, for example, prayer in the name of Jesus Christ, (Jn 16:24).
Furthermore, once an individual becomes a believer, before he can pray, he must account for his daily sins through confession and thereby be restored to fellowship with God as required such that He is, then, declared by God as purified from all unrighteousness and consequently enabled once more to exercise his privilege as a child of God - which includes prayer:
[I Jn 1:9]:
(v. 9) "If we [believers, vv. 2:1-2] confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
7) FINALLY, AS A BELIEVER, ONE MUST PRAY IN ACCORDANCE WITH GOD'S WORD
[Jn 15:7-8]:
(v. 7) If you remain in Me...
[i.e., if you remain in fellowship with me]
...and My words remain in you,
[via study and obedience to God's Word]
...ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you.
(v. 8) This is to My Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be My disciples."
"If you remain in Me" = If you believers abide in Me, i.e., continually get in and stay in fellowship with Me, (I Jn 1:3, 7, 9). Only believers can abide in Christ, (Ro 8:8).
"and My words remain in you" = Abiding in Christ is a result of studying, learning and obeying God's Word, the first step of which is confession, (I Jn 1:3, 7, 9).
"If you remain in Me and My words remain in you, ask [in prayer] whatever you wish and it will be given you" = Prayer is therefore effective when God's Word is learned and applied and when prayer is, as a result of understanding and obeying Scripture, made in line with what God says in His Word. So this verse is saying that if one learns and obeys what God says in His Word THEN "ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you."
Berean Tape 74TL-11 - side 2 - Techniques of Prayer, (cont.):
a) PRAYERS ARE TO ADDRESSED TO GOD THE FATHER
Berean Tape 74TL-11 - side 2 - Techniques of Prayer, (cont.):
"The Word of God declares to us that we are to direct our prayers to the Father. In John 17 verse 1 we have the High Priestly prayer of the Lord Jesus Christ. And in that prayer, He addresses the Father:
[Jn 17:1]:
"These things Jesus spoke; and lifting up His eyes to heaven, He said, 'Father, the hour has come; glorify Thy Son, that the Son may glorify Thee,"]
...In Ephesians chapter 5 verse 20, the Apostle Paul gives guidance again for the direction of prayer:
[Eph 5:20]:
"Always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father"]
...You do not address the Son [in prayer].
In Matthew 6:9, you have again, prayer directed in that occasion when the disciples said, 'Teach us to pray.'....
[Matthew 6:6, 9]:
(v. 6) "But you, when you pray, GO INTO YOUR INNER ROOM, AND WHEN YOU HAVE SHUT YOUR DOOR, pray to your Father Who is in secret, and your Father Who sees in secret will repay you.
(v. 9) [Jesus said to the discipes]"Pray, then, in this way:
'Our Father Who are in heaven, Hallowed be Thy name......' "]
...And the prayer is always addressed to the Father... You never address anybody in prayer except the Father..."
b) PRAY IN THE NAME OF GOD THE SON
Berean Tape 74TL-11 - side 2 - Techniques of Prayer, (cont.):
"In the book of John we have several verses clarifying this point:
[Jn 14:13]:
"And whatever you ask in My [Jesus'] name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.'
[Jn 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 of the Father [Notice: addressed to the Father] in My name, He may give to you."
[Jn 16:23-24]:
(v. 23) "And in that day you will ask Me no question. Truly, truly, I say to you, if you shall ask the Father for anything, He will give it to you in My name."
(v. 24) Until now you have asked for nothing in My name; ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be made full."
[Eph 5:20]:
"Always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father"]
We are to pray in the name of the Son, giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. So the place that the Son comes into your prayer life is that you are praying in His authority. You are praying as a child of God who [by definition, Jn 1:12] is born again and who therefore has complete access to... [God's] throne of grace, (Heb 4:16). It is your right and privilege at any time of the day and night to approach God the Father [directly] in prayer through the authority of the Son to Whom you are united by your faith in Him...[Ro 6:5; Phil 2:1]....
...[Believers'] names carry no weight but the name of Christ carries all the weight we need...."
c) WE ARE TO PRAY IN THE POWER OF GOD THE HOLY SPIRIT
Berean Tape 74TL-11 - side 2 - Techniques of Prayer, (cont.):
[Jude 20]:
"But you, beloved, [believers, v.1] building yourselves up on your most holy faith; praying in the Holy Spirit..." ]
"...'praying in the Holy Spirit" = The Holy Spirit has a major role in our prayer life. ...[This phrase 'praying in the Holy Spirit'] means praying from the soul which is controlled by the Holy Spirit...
[Ephesians 6:18]:
"With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints."
[Ro 15:13]:
"Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit
..Our functioning in the Christian life is always by means of the power of the Holy Spirit...
..So here's the divine technique for prayer:
God has given us [believers] a divine provision. Prayer was designed for His children to be able to talk Him. So there is a proper way of handling prayer. And when a proper prayer is dispensed it instantly spans the vast space between us and heaven and it is immediately received in heaven.... And you have a direct line... right into heaven's throne room..."
So to pray in the Spirit means, first of all to be in fellowship with God = not having a problem with unconfessed sin, and second of all, to pray under the direction and control of God the Holy Spirit while in fellowship with God.
d) CHRISTIANS ARE NOT TOLD WHAT TO SAY IN THEIR PRAYERS
Berean Tape 74TL-11 - side 2 - Techniques of Prayer, (cont.):
"We are, as a matter of fact, not to use some stereotyped repetitious prayer, that we read, something that someone has written, that we repeatedly use. That's religion. And it is wrong, consequently, to use the 'LORD'S PRAYER' as an approach to God... [The model] of the 'LORD'S PRAYER' is simply a model... What God wants you to do is to talk in your own words..."
[Compare Mt 6:7]:
"And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition, as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words."
Berean Tape 74TL-11 - side 2 - Techniques of Prayer, (cont.):
"[God] has to respond because believers approach Him on the authority of His Son, Whom He will never reject... [Christian's] have a totally different ground than the unbeliever does.... ...Since the Father gave up His beloved Son in salvation, that was the greatest thing He could do for us, He will not refuse us lesser things..."
[Ro 8:32]:
"He Who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?"
[Compare Jn 15:16]:
"You did not choose Me, but I [Jesus] chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit - fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in My name."
Notice that when a disciple bears fruit he is in the will of God, hence whatever he asks in the name of Jesus Christ, will certainly be given.
10) OLD TESTAMENT PRAYER VS NEW TESTAMENT PRAYER
Berean Tape 74TL-11 - side 2 - Techniques of Prayer, (cont.):
"In the Old Testament they placed the call to heaven through the Levitical Priesthood. All prayers went through the Levitical Priesthood. If you want[ed] to pray to God, you went to the priest, you made your sacrifice, and you made your approach to God...
...Now the Old Testament saints were taught a technique for prayer. When the Old Testament believer approached God, he had to approach God on the basis of the promises that God made. They would call upon God and say, 'Now, God, You promised to do this and
I call upon You as a true and honest God to do this as You have promised....' Sometimes they would even be given the very words to use in this prayer...
[Compare Dt 26:5-6]:
(v. 5) "And you shall answer and say before the LORD your God, 'My father was a wandering Aramean, and he went down to Egypt and sojourned there, few in number; but there he became a great, mighty and populous nation.
(v. 6) And the Egyptians treated us harshly and afflicted us, and imposed hard labor on us... [etc., etc.]' "]
But in the New Testament, the dispensation of grace, we have a 'direct dialing system.' When we are born into God's family, every Christian becomes a believer priest...
[I Peter 2:5, 9]:
(v. 5) "You also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
(v. 9) But you are A CHOSEN RACE, A ROYAL PRIESTHOOD, A HOLY NATION, A PEOPLE FOR GOD'S OWN POSSESSION, that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him Who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light."]
...So believers today have direct access to the Father without any human manipulator in between. And we place our prayer to God the Father as we have already indicated, (Mt 6:6, 9; Jn 16:23, I Pet 1:17)...
Now the number you have to dial is J-O-H-N-1-4-6.... And if you have not dialed this number, you have no access to and no hope of being heard...
[Jn 14:6]:
"Jesus said to him, 'I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me."]
The connection is established through your new birth [Jn 3:1-16] - through your relationship to the Lord Jesus Christ. Now once the connection is established it never has to be reinstalled [Eph 1:13-14; Ro 8:38-39]. You have a permanent hotline to the Father's throne room of grace, [Ref. Eph 2:18; 3:12]. You will never call this number and find a busy signal, day or night. The service man will never come by and cut off your service because of lack of payment because it is a grace system and it's all been payed for already. And the Father invites us, therefore, without any hesitation, for any reason at all, to call Him at any time...
[Jer 33:3]:
"Call to Me, and I will answer you, and I will tell you great and mighty things, which you do not know.'
[Heb 4:16]:
"Let us therefore draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and may find grace to help in time of need."]
...You have no reason, whatsoever, at any time, to have any hesitancy to approach God...
11) ELEMENTS THAT SHOULD BE INVOLVED IN PRAYER
Berean Tape 74TL-11 - side 2 - Techniques of Prayer, (cont.):
"Now you understand that prayer is your privilege, your approach is on the basis of the fact that you are a believer in union with Jesus Christ, that you have His authority to approach the Father and that the Father is eager and ready to listen... You, as your own priest, may approach God without any intermediary. There are certain elements that should be included in prayer."
b) CONFESSION OF SIN IN ORDER TO PRAY IN THE POWER OF THE SPIRIT
"Obviously, point number one should be confession as per I Jn 1:9. Prayer has to be made as Jude 20 indicates in the power of God the Holy Spirit. Every one of us is either operating under the control of the Holy Spirit or under the control of the old sin nature. When the old sin nature controls our lives we have trouble on the line with our calls to heaven. That's one of the reasons the calls don't get through and we think that prayer is not working. There's nothing wrong with prayer. It's our technique that we're using.... Unconfessed sin automatically keeps our prayer from getting through to heaven... Take care of that first...
[Ps 66:18]:
"If I regard wickedness in my heart,
The LORD will not hear"]
...If there is sin unconfessed, God will not hear you..."
So confess your known sin(s) and thereby open up the line for your prayer requests to God:
11) ELEMENTS THAT SHOULD BE INVOLVED IN PRAYER, (cont.)
"Point number two, an element of prayer is thanksgiving....
[I Thess 5:16-18]:
(v. 17) "Pray without ceasing;
(v. 18) in everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."
[Eph 5:20]:
"Always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father"]
...Confession has been made. The line is open. Now we begin speaking with thanksgiving; and thanksgiving implies praise...
[Ps 107:8]:
"Let them give thanks to the LORD for His loving-kindness,
And for His wonders to the sons of men!"]
...Thanksgiving is a way of praising God. But Christians do not bring animal sacrifices to praise God. Instead we bring what Hebrews 13:15 refers to as the sacrifice of praise - that is the fruit of our lips. We praise God in a different way than they did
in the Old Testament with those sacrifices. All good things come from God. So He alone is worthy of our fullest praise...
[Jas 1:17]:
"Every good thing bestowed and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with Whom there is no variation, or shifting shadow."]
...So, we confess sin and then we express our praise, our thanksgiving. We remember what the Lord has done for us and we express that gratitude.
"A third element in prayer is intercession for others. You can turn freely to the heavenly Father for guidance and for daily needs of those around you...
[Phillippeans 4:6]:
"Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God."]
...Ephesians 6:18 calls upon us to intercede for all the saints....
[Eph 6:18]:
"With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints"
..It is God's will that you should pray for others; for Christians as per Ephesians 6:18 and also it's God's will that you pray for unbelievers...
..Also, we are to pray for the salvation of the lost...
And we are to pray for our national leaders and the country... While we realize from prophecy that the nations of the world are going to a certain self destructive end, yet we also realize that God has established human government for the protection of the human race. And we are constantly admonished that we are to pray for government. Why?... We are to pray specifically that we may enjoy peace. Because peace give us the condition and the opportunity and the situation for the propagation of the gospel and the Word of God....
[I Tim 2:1-4]:
(v. 1) "First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men,
(v. 2) for kings and all who are in authority, in order that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity.
(v. 3) This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior.
(v. 4) Who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth."]
...God also wants you to pray for those you love and also for those who run you down... who abuse us, who mistreat you...
[Mt 5:44]:
"But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you."]
It is not a bad idea to have a prayer list...
And to make your requests specific... You'll be surprised how many things you will find regularly to pray for...
Finally, there is a fourth element and that is petition for our own needs...
[Jn 14:13-14; 15:7]:
(v. 14:13) "And whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
(v. 14:14) If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it.
(v. 15:7) If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it shall be done for you."
[Ro 8:32]:
"He Who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?"
[Heb 4:16]:
"Let us therefore draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and may find grace to help in time of need."]
...The Father may not always grant our wants but He will always grant the needs which we have requested and which it is His plan for us to have...
[Phil 4:19]:
"And my God shall supply all your [believers', v. 4:1] needs according to His riches in glory in Jesus Christ."]
12) THE RELATIONSHIP OF PRAYER PETITIONS AND PRAYER DESIRES
Berean Tape 74L-11 - side 2 - Techniques of Prayer, (cont.):
"There is a difference between what we ask of God and what we desire....
b) GOD GIVES WHAT IS ASKED FOR BUT NOT WHAT IS DESIRED
"The petition is answered but the desire is not answered....
This is a very dangerous experience to have... it happens to people who insist... on having a certain thing. And when God grants it they discover that their desire has not been fulfilled. And as a matter of fact it causes people a lot of grief... ...We have the request on the part of Israel that they have a ruler to be placed over them. That was their desire....
[I Sam 8:5-9]:
(v. 4) "So all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah.
(v. 5) They said to him, 'You are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways; now appoint a king to lead us such as all the other nations have.
(v. 6) But when they said, 'Give us a king to lead us,' this displeased Samuel; so he prayed to the LORD.
(v. 7) And the LORD told him: 'Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected Me as their King.
(v. 8) As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking Me and serving other gods, so they are doing to you.
(v. 9) Now listen to them; but warn them solemnly and let them know what the king who will reign over them will do....
(v. 19) "But the people refused to listen to Samuel. 'No!' They said. 'We want a king over us."
...[So, Israel's petition is], 'Give us a king.' ...So they got their king. God granted their [request] But as you know... it brought them a great deal of grief... Their request did not fulfill their desire of personal satisifaction as a nation...
c) PETITION NOT ANSWERED, DESIRE IS GRANTED
"...God knows a better way to grant you what you seek...
...Man's way is rejected. God gives His way. You don't get what you asked for, but you do get your desire fulfilled - the solution of your problem....
[Gen 17:18-19]:
(v. 17) "Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed, and said in his heart, 'Will a child be born to a man one hundred years old? And will Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?
(v. 18) And Abraham said to God, 'Oh that Ishmael might live before Thee!'
[i.e., that Ishmael would be the son that God promised Abraham who would be the heir of God's promise of redemption of mankind and thereby become a great nation of heirs]
(v. 19) But God said, 'No, but Sarah your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac; and I will establish My covenant with him for an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him.."
...Here was the request that Ishamel should be an heir of promise. This was denied. The LORD said, 'No, Ishmael will not be the son of promise. That's going to be a son that's to be born later.' But what Abraham wanted was to see Ishmael a great nation and he did get that desire. That was granted....
[Gen 18:22-33]:
(v. 23) "And Abraham came near and said, 'Wilt Thou indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked?[in Sodom and Gomorrah]
(v. 24) Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city; wilt Thou indeed sweep it away and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous who are in it?
(v. 25) Far be it from Thee to do such a thing, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous and the wicked are treated alike. Far be it from Thee! Shall not the Judge of all the earth deal justly?'
(v. 26) So the LORD said, 'If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare the whole place on their account.'
(v. 27) And Abraham answered and said, 'Now behold, I have ventured to speak to the LORD, although I am but dust and ashes.
(v. 28) Suppose the fifty righteous are lacking five, wilt Thou destroy the whole city because of five?' And He said, 'I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.'
(v. 29) And he spoke to Him yet again and said, 'Suppose forty are found there?' And He said, 'I will not do it on account of the forty.'
(v. 30) Then he said, 'Oh may the LORD not be angry, and I shall speak; suppose thirty are found there?' And He said, 'I will not do it if I find thirty there.'
(v. 31) And he said, 'Now behold, I have ventured to speak to the LORD; suppose twenty are found there?' And He said, 'I will not destroy it on account of the twenty.'
(v. 32) Then he said, 'Oh may the LORD not be angry, and I shall speak only this once; suppose ten are found there?' And He said, 'I will not destroy it on account of the ten.'
(v. 33) And as soon as He had finished speaking to Abraham the LORD departed; and Abraham returned to his place."]
...The request on the part of Abraham was to spare Sodom and Gomorrah. Why did he want Sodom and Gomorrah spared? Because his nephew Lot was in the city and he didn't want his nephew to get killed. So he... said, 'LORD, please spare Sodom and Gomorrah.' That was his petition. The LORD did not spare Sodom and Gomorrah but He gave him his desire. He did protect his nephew Lot. [Gen 19:29]
[2 Cor 12:7-10]:
(v. 7) "And because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, for this reason, to keep me from exalting myself, there was given me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger os Satan to buffet me - to keep me from exalting myself!
(v. 8) Concerning this I entreated the LORD three times that it might depart from me.
(v. 9) And He has said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.'
(v. 10) Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ's sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong,]
...The Apostle Paul asked the LORD to remove the thorn - the physical problem under which he suffered and which was a burden for him to carry.... The LORD did not remove the thorn but He did give him the grace to have the relief..."
d) PETITION IS ANSWERED & THE DESIRE IS GRANTED
"...And here is where you are right on the beam: In Holy Spirit led praying, your petition is answered and your desire is satisfied. That's the kind of praying that we should seek to accomplish.....
[1 Kgs 18:36-39]:
(v. 36) "Then it came about at the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet caome near and said, 'O LORD, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, today let it be known that Thou art God in Israel, and that I am Thy servant, and that Thou art God in Israel, and that I am Thy servant, and that I have done all these things at Thy word.
(v. 37) 'Answer me, O LORD, answer me, that this people may know that Thou, O LORD, art God, and that Thou hast turned their heart back again.'
(v. 38) Then fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the burnt offering and the wood and the stones and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench.
(v. 39) And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces; and they said, 'The LORD, He is God; the LORD, He is God.']
...[The] petition is that the heathen might know God... It is granted. Why was the petition made? Because of the desire that the heathen would know God's power and would come to Him....
[Luke 23:42-43]:
(v. 42) "And he was saying, 'Jesus, remember me when You come in Your kingdom!'
(v. 43) And He said to him, 'Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise.']
...The petition by the thief on the cross is to be remembered in Paradise. What was he asking for? Salvation.... He was remembered and he was saved. His petition was granted and his desire was also answered...."
e) PETITION IS NOT ANSWERED AND DESIRE IS NOT ANSWERED
[Dr. Danish states, tape #74 TL-12, side1]:
"There [is] a fourth condition... the petition [is] not answered nor [is] the desire answered... This is caused by certain road blocks to prayer being answered and to our desires being met....
1) ROADBLOCKS TO PRAYER
a) LACK OF FAITH
"The first road block that we find in the Word of God to prayer is the lack of faith...
[Mt 21:22]:
"If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer."