Perseverance in a dry place
John Ortberg from Menlo Park Presbyterian Church recalls
A man I'll call Paul (because that's actually his name) told me he recently started going to church. In his mid-seventies, with no faith background, he woke up one morning with a sudden urge to hear the pope, and that launched him on a journey that led a few months later to a Presbyterian church and then to a commitment to follow Jesus. Every week he comes to church and marvels at all he gets to learn about prayer and worship and faith.
A man I'll call Ralph (not his real name) told me recently how he stopped going to church. I have known him for decades. He is a well-known pastor and speaker. He still believes in God. He meets with some like-minded friends on Sunday evening to talk and pray together. But he got burned out on the local church—it came to feel to him like a relentless drive for numbers and success and program and hype. He told me that the people in his little house group are long-time church people, most of them former church staff members.
Paul and Ralph exemplify a dynamic just beneath the surface in many churches. People who are new to the church often grow the quickest and appreciate it the most. But people who have been around a while, those who know the church best and have served the longest, often feel the least helped and the most used.
At a certain point of spiritual development, increased involvement in church activities ceases to match spiritual growth. That is, the more programmes you throw yourself into, does not equal spiritual growth.
The longer we become a Christian the easier it is to forget what a difference Jesus makes in our lives. Too often we look to a church, programme, home group etc for our spiritual development. As a Christian we often forget who Jesus really is.
Arthur Burns was chair of the Federal Reserve in the 1970s, and a Jewish economist of great influence in Washington. Burns was once asked to pray at a gathering of evangelical politicians. Stunning his hosts, he prayed: "Lord, I pray that Jews would come to know Jesus Christ. And I pray that Buddhists would come to know Jesus Christ. And I pray that Muslims would come to know Jesus Christ." And then, most stunning of all: "And Lord, I pray that Christians would come to know Jesus Christ."
As a Jew Arthur Burns was very familiar with the teachings of Christ, he also knew that Christians get tired of Christ’s teachings. We fail to persevere in our faith. We shift home groups, we shift churches and we try all sorts of things to make spiritual growth happen quickly.
Let’s read Acts 12:1-12:24
Today I would like to talk about Perseverance in a dry place. The main points this passage brings up are:
1) Prayer is important for perseverance
2) God shows up when his people "stretch out" and persevere
3) God shows up when his people fall short but still persevere
4) God is not afraid of big jobs.
What do you need persistence to overcome?
1) Prayer is important for perseverance
Pray till prayer makes you forget your own wish, and leave it or merge it in God's will.
Frederick William Robertson
English, Anglican Clergyman (1816 - 1853)
If we don’t have a commitment to prayer, how can God answer us? If we do not ask him for something how can he say ‘yes or no’. We see the critical importance of prayer for God’s people in Acts 12:1-5
1It was about this time that King Herod arrested some who belonged to the church, intending to persecute them. 2He had James, the brother of John, put to death with the sword. 3When he saw that this pleased the Jews, he proceeded to seize Peter also. This happened during the Feast of Unleavened Bread. 4After arresting him, he put him in prison, handing him over to be guarded by four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring him out for public trial after the Passover.
5So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him. Acts 12:1-5
Luke has been recording one marvellous conversion after another—the 3000 on Pentecost, the Samaritans, the Ethiopian, Saul of Tarsus, Cornelius—they were witnesses and the word of God was spreading. It is like when you are a new Christian or the church is going through an exciting growth period. It is so exciting and it feels so right.
And then a serious setback comes, in the death of James and the imprisonment of Peter two apostles and leaders in the Jerusalem church. The same thing happens to us when the novelty of being a Christian wears off, Jesus has made some fundamental changes in our lives but it starts to not be so fun. There is no pizzaz in the air, there is just me and God and frankly He is looking a little dated.
Herod put Peter in prison, intending to bring him out for public trial—what we might call today a “show trial”—after Passover. Following Peter’s trial would come his execution. At the time it must have seemed like a grave crisis. One apostle taken down, another imprisoned awaiting death. The situation looked bleak, even hopeless. There appeared to be no possibility of an escape or jailbreak. What could the powerless little community of Christ do against the might of Rome?
5So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him. Acts 12:5
In this corner, we have the world, weighing in with mortgages, family stress, commitments and in this corner, we have the church, weighing in with prayer. Sometimes life can seem so stressful, our faith and our church so small. Prayer so not effective. We want to give up, we don’t want to persevere.
People say to me, ‘Pastor Noal, you don’t understand. I have mortgages and bills. My marriage is not going well, I have health problems and three kids to feed. I am exhausted and you think a little prayer is going to make things better’.
Yet here in the bible they were faced with something much more dangerous. Their leaders are in prison, Emperor Nero runs the empire and mass persecutions against Christians are starting. Still they prayed because they knew prayer works.
The Southern Medical Journal in 1988 did a study on people having a heart attack, those who were prayed for by Christians reported a significant therapeutic improvement over those who were not prayed for. If prayer is good enough for people having a heart attack I suggest that prayer is good enough for you and whatever problems you are facing.
Even Jesus talks about it in the story of the famer and the seeds.
3Then he told them many things in parables, saying: "A farmer went out to sow his seed. 4As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. 5Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. 6But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. …” Matthew 13
2. God shows up when his people "stretch out" and persevere
Sometimes in life we can become disillusioned with God, the church and others. We live in a world where people are always trying something new, new career, new travel, get divorced when ‘no longer in love’ and try someone new, new sports, new hobbies, new friends. It is tempting in faith and spirituality to do the same thing.
We all know those Christians who are constantly church shopping and looking for the next spiritual high, a new home group, a new move of the spirit. Yet rarely do such people ask if God is trying to teach them perseverance in their prayer life.
If I had to select one quality, one personal characteristic that I regard as being most highly correlated with success, whatever the field, I would pick the trait of persistence. Determination. The will to endure to the end, to get knocked down seventy times and get up off the floor saying, ''Here comes number seventy-one!''
Richard M. DeVos
born 1926, American Businessman, Co-founder of Amway Corp.
5So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him.
6The night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries stood guard at the entrance. 7Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. "Quick, get up!" he said, and the chains fell off Peter's wrists.
8Then the angel said to him, "Put on your clothes and sandals." And Peter did so. "Wrap your cloak around you and follow me," the angel told him. 9Peter followed him out of the prison, but he had no idea that what the angel was doing was really happening; he thought he was seeing a vision. 10They passed the first and second guards and came to the iron gate leading to the city. It opened for them by itself, and they went through it. When they had walked the length of one street, suddenly the angel left him.
11Then Peter came to himself and said, "Now I know without a doubt that the Lord sent his angel and rescued me from Herod's clutches and from everything the Jewish people were anticipating." Acts 12: 5-11
In verse 5 the phrase “earnestly” literally means “stretched out” in the original greek and it pictures the idea of hands stretched out to God in prayer.
a. It’s the same word Luke used in describing Jesus’ prayer in the garden of Gesthemane.
b. It gives the impression of wholehearted, urgent pleading to God.
c. While Peter was fast asleep in prison in the middle of the night, the church was engaged in earnest, vigilant prayer for him.
APP: When was the last time you “stretched out” in prayer? Been earnest, fervent—even desperate in prayer?
Too often as Christians we want the latest big rush. We want that ‘new’ feeling. We don’t want to be stuck with an old fashioned faith. We feel like prayer is second-best. So long as we can fuss and work and rush about, so long as we can enrol in a programme, we have some hope; but if we have to fall back upon God—well, we don’t want to count on that. Better to try a new home group, a new programme, a new church or an entirely new spirituality and leave the Christian faith all together.
In this passage we see it is all about God and what God wants for our lives. It is about persevering with God, even when things do not seem good.
a. Peter hadn’t planned this. He was asleep, and the angel has to nudge him awake & tell him how to dress. Peter doesn’t even think it’s real!
b. But then Peter gets it. God’s people persevered in prayer.
c. This is a huge theme for Luke that he repeats again and again:
Luke 1:10-11 10And when the time for the burning of incense came, all the assembled worshipers were praying outside. 11Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense.
Luke 3:21 21When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too. And as he was praying, heaven was opened
Luke 9:28-29 28About eight days after Jesus said this, he took Peter, John and James with him and went up onto a mountain to pray. 29As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning.
Acts 4:31 31After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.
Acts 9:11 11The Lord told him, "Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying.,
Acts 11:5 5"I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision. I saw something like a large sheet being let down from heaven by its four corners, and it came down to where I was.
It’s common in applying this passage to focus on God’s deliverance of Peter in answer to “persistent” prayer, while ignoring James who is still left there. But the fact that Luke mentions James reminds us of God’s sovereignty when thinking about God’s help in times of trouble. God shows up, but we must leave it to God to do what’s best.
The question for us is, will we remain persistent and obedient to God regardless of the outcome?
3. God shows up when his people fall short (but still persevere)
I've missed over 9,000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. 26 times I've been trusted to take the game-winning shot . . . and missed. I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.
Michael Jordan
Acts 12:12-17 12When this had dawned on him, he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark, where many people had gathered and were praying. 13Peter knocked at the outer entrance, and a servant girl named Rhoda came to answer the door. 14When she recognized Peter's voice, she was so overjoyed she ran back without opening it and exclaimed, "Peter is at the door!"
15"You're out of your mind," they told her. When she kept insisting that it was so, they said, "It must be his angel."
16But Peter kept on knocking, and when they opened the door and saw him, they were astonished. 17Peter motioned with his hand for them to be quiet and described how the Lord had brought him out of prison. "Tell James and the brothers about this," he said, and then he left for another place.
If I were making this story up, I’d have left this part out. If I was making up a story like this, I would have said that all the Christians saw Peter and were happy because they knew that God would act. The truth is, they were praying for Peter’s deliverance but when Peter arrives they can’t believe it.
We all know
James 5 15And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven.
You’ll hear some sermons that use this passage to teach that we should pray believing our prayers will be answered, “pray with expectation.” OK, well that’s true enough--I agree with it. But this is balanced, in Luke’s point it says--their prayers were answered even if they didn’t believe it would be. So what are we to take from this?
Even when we feel exhausted, when our faith is weak and we are tempted to throw everything in, God hears our prayers. It is those prayers that he honours. When you come to church and you feel nothing, when you come to home group and you feel nothing, when all around seems dark and we begin to pray. God hears us, prayer is important. You may feel nothing but darkness for weeks, or years, but God hears your prayers.
In 1975 researchers from Stanford University released an article that shows impressions really count, even if you know they are rationally wrong. When we have an impression of someone, ‘like God does not really answer my prayers’, it is very hard to change your mind by force of will.
It is an encouragement that their prayer is described as ‘earnest’ even though they could not believe that God would answer their prayers. The same applies to us; we may come to church emotionally exhausted, it is routine and we are here. We try to pray with passion and gusto, but there is nothing there. We pray, ‘God I am trying to feel something, like I used to, but I don’t feel anything.’ Matthew 5:3 says, ‘ 3"Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.’
A solid prayer life is not based on how we feel, for we are only human, it is based upon God’s faithfulness. So even though you may not ‘feel’ that God will answer your prayers, he is still faithful and asks us to pray.
4. God is not afraid of big jobs.
Q. What's the difference between prayer in church and prayer in a casino?
A. In a casino, you really mean it!
18In the morning, there was no small commotion among the soldiers as to what had become of Peter. 19After Herod had a thorough search made for him and did not find him, he cross-examined the guards and ordered that they be executed.
Herod's Death
Then Herod went from Judea to Caesarea and stayed there a while. 20He had been quarreling with the people of Tyre and Sidon; they now joined together and sought an audience with him. Having secured the support of Blastus, a trusted personal servant of the king, they asked for peace, because they depended on the king's country for their food supply.
21On the appointed day Herod, wearing his royal robes, sat on his throne and delivered a public address to the people. 22They shouted, "This is the voice of a god, not of a man." 23Immediately, because Herod did not give praise to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died.
24But the word of God continued to increase and spread. (Acts 12:18-24)
The chapter opens with James having been killed, Peter in prison, and Herod triumphant; it closes with Herod dead, Peter free, and the word of God triumphant.
What’s the biggest prayer you’ve never dared to pray? Often I think we’re afraid to pray for big things, because our faith wavers; their faith wavered, and God still showed up. We could pray for the salvation of people who don’t yet know Jesus—people in our families who seem far away from God and who have been that way for a long time. We could pray for our witness as a church to transform our community. We could pray that our family be blessed and protected from harm.
What is success? I think it is a mixture of having a flair for the thing that you are doing; knowing that it is not enough, that you have got to have hard work and a certain sense of purpose.
Margaret Thatcher
(British Prime minister 1979 – 1990)
I am not saying God answers every prayer, and the point of this passage is that it is not dependent upon you being passionate, it is about being persistent. Yes, James was killed and it was his time to go with God, but Peter was saved as God listened to the prayers of the people of God. What this passage clearly says is that God is bigger than you can imagine.
We are reminded in Psalm 8
Psalm 8
A psalm of David.
1 O LORD, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
You have set your glory
above the heavens.
2 From the lips of children and infants
you have ordained praise
because of your enemies,
to silence the foe and the avenger.
3 When I consider your heavens,
the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
which you have set in place,
4 what is man that you are mindful of him,
the son of man that you care for him?
5 You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings
and crowned him with glory and honor.
6 You made him ruler over the works of your hands;
you put everything under his feet:
7 all flocks and herds,
and the beasts of the field,
8 the birds of the air,
and the fish of the sea,
all that swim the paths of the seas.
9 O LORD, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
After reading that psalm, I can confidently say that God understands your life, your marriage, your health and your worries. He will journey with you, if only you would pray to him.
Perseverance in our Christian walk is essential, even if our prayers are done from a spiritually dry place.
Perseverance in a dry place
1) Prayer is important for perseverance
2) God shows up when his people "stretch out" and persevere
3) God shows up when his people fall short but still persevere
4) God is not afraid of big jobs.
As a pastor I know that life is not easy, that things can distract you and get in the way.
What do you need persistence to overcome?
Karl Barth said: “To clasp hands in prayer is the beginning of an uprising against the disorder of the world.” Let’s stretch out in prayer together.
