Prayer Keys - Pure Motives
“What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? You want something but don’t get it. You kill and covet, but you cannot have what you want. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.” James 4:3
Just to be clear before we go too far, God knows our weaknesses. If we needed a perfect attitude before praying none of us... Let me rephrase that. Some of you may be more spiritual than I am. If we needed a perfect attitude before praying, I would never be able to pray. God knows our weaknesses, but that does not excuse selfish prayers.
A heavy snowfall closed all the schools in town. When classes next met, a teacher asked her students what they did on the free days. After describing their antics, one child added, “And I prayed for more snow!”
Sometimes, we try to make our prayers sound extra selfless and spiritual. I heard about a college student who always ended her prayers with a simple petition: “God, I’m not asking this for myself. Please send my mother a strong, handsome, Christian son-in-law.”
The following prayer was reportedly found among the papers of John Ward, a Member of Parliament:
“O Lord, thou knowest that I have mine estates in the City of London...”
When I first read this, I didn’t notice the plural, “estates.” I noticed it was plural while taking notes.
“O Lord, thou knowest that I have mine ESTATESSSS in the City of London, and likewise that I have lately purchased an estate in the county of Essex. I beseech thee to preserve the two counties of Middlesex and Essex from fire and earthquake; and as I have a mortgage in Hertfordshire, I beg of thee likewise to have an eye of compassion on that county. As for the rest of the counties, thou mayest deal with them as thou art pleased.”
“Lord, take care of me and mine. I don’t care about them or theirs.” That’s even more selfish than the Janis Joplin song. Does anyone remember the prayer she sang?
Oh Lord, won’t you buy me a Mercedes-Benz?
My friends all drive Porsches, I must make amends.
Worked hard all my lifetime, no help from my friends,
So Lord, won’t you buy me a Mercedes-Benz?
I’m sure it was meant to be humorous, but too many Christians pray that way. There are too many preachers who preach like “name it and claim it” is the gospel instead of salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. Their message is, “God wants you to be prosperous. If you want a Mercedes Benz, name it and claim it. If you don’t get it, your faith is too weak. Send me money and I will pray for your faith to grow (while my driver gets the oil changed in my Mercedes).”
James says that selfishness, the sin that the prosperity gospel promotes, is the reason his readers prayers are not granted. Selfishness paralyzes prayer.
The KJV says the readers “ask amiss.” Those words, in the Greek, could mean asking for the wrong things or, as the NIV translates them, asking for the wrong reasons, with the wrong motives.
Have you ever not wanted to pray about something because you are afraid God will say no? You finally decide to pray about it, then, just as you feared, God said no.
The head cheerleader really needs help with chemistry. If her grades do not improve, she is off the squad. She REALLY needs help with chemistry. So you help her. She appreciates the fact that a smart guy doesn’t make her feel dumb. Her grades improve. She appreciates you even more. Then, she has that “ah ha moment.” She understands. She never thought she would understand chemistry, but she does. Now she appreciates you even more.
You pray, “God, if I’m ever going to ask her out, this is the time. I know she’s not a Christian, but maybe I can witness to her on a date, when we’re not thinking about chemistry... when we’re not thinking about THIS chemistry...”
Thus saith the Lord, “NO!”
When you ask to date a non-Christian you are asking for the wrong thing.
Maybe high school is just a dim memory for you. You’ve already married the girl of your dreams. Now, you’re dreaming of a bass boat. You start working overtime. If you keep tithing on your regular income, the overtime pay will just be enough to make those payments.
You pray, “Lord, my boss likes fishing. If I had a boat, I could invite him to go with me. We can enjoy your creation together, then I could witness to him. His tithe would be a lot more than my overtime tithe...”
Thus saith the Lord, “NO!”
You ask, but do not receive, because you are asking for the wrong things. The words, in the Greek, could mean asking for the wrong things or, probably, asking for the wrong reasons, with the wrong motives.
It seems like it is impossible to make ends meet. You keep the kids while your husband works during the day. He keeps the kids while you work part-time evenings.
You pray, “O God, life would be so much easier if my husband got a promotion. We could even go to prayer meeting on Wednesday nights...”
I guess people in that position are not here to hear this... O well.
God may know that you really have other plans. You and your husband may have already planned that if he gets the promotion, he will go bowling on Wednesdays and you will join your friends for “girls’ night out” on Thursdays.
Thus saith the Lord, “NO!”
So far, we have looked at the easy examples, the obvious ones. Some are not so obvious.
The first church, as seen in Acts, was a praying church. If we prayed like they prayed in Acts 1, Bro. Jim’s invitations would look like Peter’s invitation, when 3000 were saved. I have prayed that God would so move among us that we would become a praying church.
That is a good thing to pray for. God wants us to be a praying church. But it is possible to ask with the wrong motives.
I began teaching during the Wednesday night prayer meetings seven months ago. Suppose I prayed every day for all those months for God to make us into a praying church. Suppose I prayed morning, noon, and night for God to make us a praying church. Suppose I prayed both persistently and fervently for God to make us a praying church.
God commands us to pray. We know that it is his will. When we pray, we are being obedient. Every time the church prayed in Acts, they received power and God received glory. Praying for God to make us a praying church is praying for the right thing. But it is still possible to ask for the wrong motive.
Suppose, while praying daily for God to make us a praying church, I picture myself teaching about prayer before we pray. The sanctuary is filled to capacity, even though it is not full on Sunday mornings. The balcony is filled to capacity, even though it is not even used on Sunday mornings. All eyes are on me. I announce the scripture. The sudden rush of turning pages is almost thunderous. Then, it is quiet, as everyone waits for me to read. I read. I teach. Through-out the sanctuary, people can be seen feverishly taking notes. The sound of my teaching is repeatedly punctuated by shouts of “Amen!” and “Yes, Lord!” and “Hallelujah!” Everyone is hanging on my every word.
When it is time to pray, groups form everywhere. Prayers raise the roof and heaven comes down. When the glory can no longer be contained, we march out, ready to take Everman for Christ, or die trying.
Suppose, while praying daily for God to make us a praying church, all that is in my mind. Do you think I am praying for God’s glory, or my own? I am praying for the right thing, but am I praying with the right motive?
If I can imagine Bro. Jim replacing me as the teacher with the same results, if I can appreciate Steve replacing me with the same results, if it doesn’t matter to me at all who is teaching when that revival comes, then I am praying for God’s glory. If that vision is unsatisfying with anyone but me teaching, I need to repent because I am asking with the wrong motive. I am asking because I want the glory.
James 3:13-18 describes bitter envy and selfish ambition as problems for the readers. This was going on in the church. By 4:1, they have elevated into feuds and battles.
In the persecuted church, it was dangerous to be a leader or teacher. Because of that, there may have been some prestige, some glory, associated with being a leader or teacher. Apparently, too many people wanted to be leaders and teachers in this church. I have never been in a church with that problem. I have been in churches where we may have wished we had that problem, but only if we didn’t understand James.
When the church prayed in Acts, they received power and God received glory. In less than thirty years, look what has happened in this body of believers. James 4:1-3:
What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? You want something but don’t get it. You kill and covet, but you cannot have what you want. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.
When Christians prayed in Acts, the Holy Spirit came on the day of Pentecost, Peter’s chains fell off and an angel lead him through locked gates and past sixteen Roman guards, and earthquake split Paul’s prison wide open without hurting anyone, the church grew from 120 to 3000 to 5000 to a great multitude with God adding daily those who were being saved.
Less than thirty years later, James writes to a church that doesn’t receive answers to prayer because they are not even praying! When they do pray, they do not receive because they ask with wrong motives. They are a fighting, quarreling, powerless church.
Selfishness paralyzes prayer. When the church in Acts prayed, they received power and God received glory. When we pray, our goal must be God’s glory and not our own.
