THE SCHOOL OF PRAYER #6: LIVING UNDER AN OPEN HEAVEN
(Aug. 2010 – Beausejour Church – Pastor Chris Jordan)
OPENING: Discuss excitement about and vision for the new school year.
“Do not remember the former things, Nor consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a new thing, Now it shall spring forth; Shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness And rivers in the desert.” (Isaiah 43:18-19).
• We’re on the verge of something big and exciting!
INTRO TO TOPIC:
Do you ever feel like you’re prayers are just bouncing off the ceiling?
We’ve been talking about the power of prayer all summer long: Alone with God, Together with Others, Fire from Heaven, Passion for the Harvest, and Coming to Jesus.
• And yet, many of you, although you’ve been praying passionate prayers, have yet to see your breakthrough come. The Bible talks about this:
• “And your heavens which are over your head shall be bronze, and the earth which is under you shall be iron.” (Deut. 28:23).
• This describes limited access to the blessings of Heaven…
• When Jesus taught us to pray, He said, “Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven.” (Matthew 6:10).
THE BIG IDEA: God wants us to live under an open Heaven, where we have free access to His abundant blessings!
I. OPEN HEAVENS REPRESENT GOD’S BLESSINGS:
“Yet He had commanded the clouds above, And opened the doors of heaven, Had rained down manna on them to eat, And given them of the bread of heaven. Men ate angels’ food; He sent them food to the full.” (Psalm 78:23-25).
• The open Heavens here symbolically represented blessings from the Lord. Isaiah prayed:
• “Oh that you would tear the heavens, that you would come down…For since the beginning of the world Men have not heard nor perceived by the ear, Nor has the eye seen any God besides You, Who acts for the one who waits for Him” (Isaiah 64:1,4).
II. JESUS LIVED UNDER AN OPEN HEAVEN:
“When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” (Matthew 3:16-17).
• Every prayer He prayed was answered, every need He had was met – why? Obedience!
III. WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE TO LIVE UNDER AN OPEN HEAVEN:
“1 "Now it shall come to pass, if you diligently obey the voice of the Lord your God, to observe carefully all His commandments which I command you today, that the Lord your God will set you high above all nations of the earth. 2 And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, because you obey the voice of the Lord your God:
3 Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the country.
4 Blessed shall be the fruit of your body, the produce of your ground and the increase of your herds, the increase of your cattle and the offspring of your flocks.
5 Blessed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl.
6 Blessed shall you be when you come in, and blessed shall you be when you go out.
7 "The Lord will cause your enemies who rise against you to be defeated before your face; they shall come out against you one way and flee before you seven ways.
8 The Lord will command the blessing on you in your storehouses and in all to which you set your hand, and He will bless you in the land which the Lord your God is giving you.
9 The Lord will establish you as a holy people to Himself, just as He has sworn to you, if you keep the commandments of the Lord your God and walk in His ways.
10 Then all peoples of the earth shall see that you are called by the name of the Lord, and they shall be afraid of you.
11 And the Lord will grant you plenty of goods, in the fruit of your body, in the increase of your livestock, and in the produce of your ground, in the land of which the Lord swore to your fathers to give you. 12 The Lord will open to you His good treasure, the heavens, to give the rain to your land in its season, and to bless all the work of your hand. You shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow. 13 And the Lord will make you the head and not the tail; you shall be above only, and not be beneath, if you heed the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you today, and are careful to observe them.” (Deut. 28:1-13).
• Notice the key to receiving all of these abundant blessings, and living under an open Heaven: Obedience to God’s commands! This is a conditional promise!
“Then the Lord appeared to Solomon by night, and said to him: "I have heard your prayer, and have chosen this place for Myself as a house of sacrifice. When I shut up heaven and there is no rain, or command the locusts to devour the land, or send pestilence among My people, if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” (2 Chron 7: 12-14).
SCRIPTURES ABOUT OBEDIENCE:
Important note: Our obedience has nothing to do with God’s love for us, our salvation, or membership in God’s family.
However, it does affect whether or not we experience God’s blessings on the earth.
If my children disobey me, I don’t stop loving them, and they don’t cease to be my children.
However, there may be negative consequences for their actions.
• John 14:21 - He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him
• James 1:25 - But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does
• Deut. 5:29 - Oh, that they had such a heart in them that they would fear Me and always keep all My commandments, that it might be well with them and with their children forever!
• Joshua 1:8 - This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.
• Matt. 6:33 - But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.
What do these Scriptures teach us?
• Prayer isn’t a magical formula; it’s about being in right relationship with God.
HOW TO LIVE UNDER AN OPEN HEAVEN:
“7 Yet from the days of your fathers You have gone away from My ordinances And have not kept them. Return to Me, and I will return to you," Says the Lord of hosts. "But you said, ’In what way shall we return?’ 8 "Will a man rob God? Yet you have robbed Me! But you say, ’In what way have we robbed You?’ In tithes and offerings. 9 You are cursed with a curse, For you have robbed Me, Even this whole nation. 10 Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, That there may be food in My house, And try Me now in this," Says the Lord of hosts, "If I will not open for you the windows of heaven And pour out for you such blessing That there will not be room enough to receive it. 11 "And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, So that he will not destroy the fruit of your ground, Nor shall the vine fail to bear fruit for you in the field," Says the Lord of hosts; 12 "And all nations will call you blessed, For you will be a delightful land," Says the Lord of hosts.” (Malachi 3:7-12).
• “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matt. 6:21).
• Do you want God to open the windows of Heaven over your life? Return to Him!
• God blesses obedience!
CLOSING CHALLENGE:
Let’s commit to walk in obedience to God and His Word so we can live under an open Heaven.
This doesn’t mean you will do this perfectly. However, if you fall, be quick to repent…
Is there something you need to confess to the Lord and repent of today? Quote 1 John 1:9
Beausejour Community Church Website: www.beausejourchurch.ca
Pastor Chris Jordan’s Blog: http://thelandofpromise.blogspot.com/
