HINDRANCES TO PRAYER
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LESSON #6 CARNAL MOTIVES
TEXT: JAMES 4:3
REVIEW:
What was our lesson last week?
Neglect of mercy.
What is the biblical definition of poor?
Those that are too young, too old, or too crippled to help themselves.
What poor is Pro. 21:13 referring to?
Both the physically and spiritually poor in and out of the church.
What are two good rules to remember when it comes to loaning money?
Never loan more than you are willing to give away.
If you cannot afford to lose it, do not lend it.
If we show mercy and listen to the cry of others what will God do?
He will show us mercy and hear our cries.
READ TEXT:
James 4:3
3 Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.
(KJV)
Many times the reason our prayers are not answered is because we ask with the wrong
- Attitude
- Spirit
- Motive
We may be praying for the right thing, it may even be the will of God, but because we pray with the wrong motives our prayers are not answered.
“We ask amiss”
This word amiss has two meanings in the word of God
One
Improper
- Not fit
- Incorrect
- Inaccurate
- Not in accord with good manners or modesty
Two
Evil
- Wrong attitude
- Wrong spirit
- Wrong motive
ASK YOURSELF
WHY DO I PRAY FOR THE THINGS I PRAY FOR?
If you are praying for financial blessing in your life
Why do you want that blessing?
Is it so that you can
- Give more to God
- Be a blessing to others
- Meet someone else’s need
- So you can tithe more
- Give more to missions
Or is so that you can get
- More things for yourself
- A new car
- A better home
- More respect
- A higher position or social standing
- Or power
God wants to bless you but He will not bless you at the cost of your soul.
1 Tim 6:9
9 But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition.
(KJV)
Example:
I have seen over the year’s men and women give their hearts to the Lord.
Begin to follow His way /laws
I have seen the blessing begin to flow into their lives
but instead of that blessing drawing them closer to God
it takes them farther away.
- They spend more and more time on the job
- Less and less time on the things of God
- They begin to buy all the toys
- And now they can’t find time to serve God because they are to busy playing / working
It would have been better if they had never been blessed at all!
It would have been better if they had gotten a job that would have kept them humble
- Because now they are in danger of losing their very soul
Mark 4:19
19 And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful.
(KJV)
Why do you pray for the things that you pray for?
God may not be blessing you the way you want to be blessed because He is trying to save you from a bunch of future problems.
He is trying to keep the things of this world from choking the very
- Word of God
- Life of God
- Salvation of God
From you
As a child of God we need to be aspiring to higher motives
not leaning to the old lust of this world.
Eph 4:22
22 That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts;
(KJV)
We have a new way of doing things
A new way of praying
New reasons and motives
Example:
Many pray for revival
Many pray for church growth
These are not bad things God wants our church to grow
- He wants us to have revival
- He wants to pour his spirit out upon us
But ask yourself
Why do we pray for these things?
Do we pray for revival out of selfish motives?
- So we can boast of a greater attendance
- Or a greater membership
- So we can have greater influence in our community
- So that we can give a good report at conference
Or do we pray for revival because
- We can’t bear to see lost souls going to hell
- We hear the cry of the lost
- The hopelessness of this generation
- We hunger for others to know the love of God
1 Cor 10:6
6 Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted.
1 Pet 2:11
11 Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul;
I Jn 2:16-17
16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
17 And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.
The danger of praying amiss or praying with a wrong attitude
is that you will be led into captivity.
The devil hears your prayers
Many times he is right there leaning over your shoulder
He is
- Listening in
- Eaves dropping
On your conversation with God
He hears our prayer
And if he knows your attitude is wrong he is going to try to answers your prayer.
- Knowing it will lead you astray
- Knowing it will lead you into bondage
You’re praying for a husband or wife
- So the devil sends along this Romeo
- He isn’t saved
- He doesn’t want to live for God
But you think God has answered your prayers because he is every thing you ever dreamed about
Or along comes Juliet
- She is perfect
- Beautiful
- Every thing you ever wanted in a women and more
But be careful because she is going to lead you into bondage.
- She is going to lead you astray.
- Right out of the will of God
I have seen others pray for jobs
- Suddenly they are offered the perfect job
- The best pay they have ever had
- Benefits
- A company car
The only catch is they have to
- Move to another city
- Work on weekends
Be careful of who is answering your prayers
If you are praying with a wrong attitude or motives the devil will try to use your very prayers to lead you into captivity.
I Jn 3:22
22 And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.
I Jn 5:14
14 And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us:
God will hear our prayers
He is faithful to answer those prayers
The key in these two scriptures is that we
We ask for things that are
- Pleasing in His sight
- And according to His will
His will is that none perish and if by not answering some of your prayers He can keep you from
- Destroying yourself
- Captivity to the things of this world
- Hell
Then those prayers will never be answered
Many times we feel God is not hearing our prayers because they are not being answered
The truth is, He is hearing our prayers and He has chosen not to answer them. He knows if he does, it will cause more harm than good.
In II Chr. 6 here is a people who have been led into captivity by their own desires and their own carnal lust
2 Chr 6:37-40
37 Yet if they bethink themselves in the land whither they are carried captive, and turn and pray unto thee in the land of their captivity, saying, We have sinned, we have done amiss, and have dealt wickedly;
38 If they return to thee with all their heart and with all their soul in the land of their captivity, whither they have carried them captives, and pray toward their land, which thou gavest unto their fathers, and toward the city which thou hast chosen, and toward the house which I have built for thy name:
39 Then hear thou from the heavens, even from thy dwelling place, their prayer and their supplications, and maintain their cause, and forgive thy people which have sinned against thee.
40 Now, my God, let, I beseech thee, thine eyes be open, and let thine ears be attent unto the prayer that is made in this place.
(KJV)
The key to having your prayers heard and answered by God are in turning to Him with
- All your heart
- All your soul
- Asking God to forgive you for your wrong motives and wrong desires
God desires to meet with us, to move in our behalf, but it must be according to His will
EXAMPLES OF UNWISE PRAYERS
NU.11: 15
I K. 19:4
JONA 4:3
MAT.20: 21
