Intro
In this message we will review five keys to answered prayer. When we make our requests to God, we are not just fulfilling a religious duty. We are interacting with our Heavenly Father concerning a perceived need. Our petition is not effective until we either get the answer or get counsel from God that we are praying amiss. If we are praying amiss, we correct that so that we are praying a prayer that God will answer.
Sometimes we think we know what needs to happen, but as we pray God gives better insight. When that happens, we adjust the prayer so that we are in alignment with his counsel. This happened to Paul. Let’s read about his experience in 2 Corinthians 12:7-10.
“And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure. 8 Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. 9 And He said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”i
It is understandable that Paul would think the removal of this “messenger of Satan” would be according to God’s will. As an apostle, Paul was on the Lord’s mission to reach the lost and establish Christians in the faith. But this evil spirit opposed him every step of the way. Paul said this messenger of Satan would “buffet” him. Kolaphizo is the Greek word translated buffet. It means “1) to strike with the fist, give one a blow with the fist 2) to maltreat, treat with violence and contumely.”ii The NIV translates it “torment.”
If there is anything I would assume God wants us rid of, it would be a messenger of Satan that is aggressively harassing us. Often when Paul would go into a city to evangelize the lost, this evil spirit would stir up persecution against him. The opposition was fierce. Surely, God would want to remove that opposition. Surely, Paul could be more effective without that to contend with.
This passage demonstrates the necessity of listening to the Lord when we prayer. Prayer is not just us telling God what we want him to do. Prayer is two-way communication. We are speaking to God, but more importantly, he is speaking to us. God answered Paul’s prayer, but not the way he expected. God revealed to Paul why he was not removing the messenger of Satan. Paul shares that revelation in verse 7: “And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me.”
Who would have thought it? This difficulty was a gift from God. It was given as a protection against pride. To become prideful is a much worse fate than to be harassed with a problem. By pride, the archangel became a devil.iii Paul had many wonderful experiences with God and amazing revelations. There is a tendency in anyone to take pride in such things. But God loved Paul too much to let that happen. With one word, God could have removed that messenger of Satan. But in his wisdom, he outsmarted the devil and used the opposition as a protection for Paul. What appeared to be so bad, God worked for Paul’s good (Rom. 8:28).iv
So, what did Paul do? He adjusted to God’s way of thinking. God told Paul that he would sustain him so that he could endure the trial. In verse 9, Paul reports the assurance that God gave him: “And He said to me, My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.’" In that trial, Paul would feel is own insufficiency; trust in the Lord, and God’s strength would be fully adequate for Paul.
Paul follows up with description of his changed way of thinking concerning this matter. He follows up with two “therefores.” Verse 9: "Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” People want the power of God to operate in their lives, but they are usually not willing to have the whole package. There is a price to pay. It’s worth it. But it is costly. Paul would rather be useful to God with the trials than to be carefree and unfruitful.
The second “therefore” is in verse 10: “Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” That gives us insight on the details of the buffeting. It probably included “infirmities, . . .reproaches . . . needs, . . . persecutions . . .distresses.” Paul not only accepted God’s plan for him, but he gladly boasted (NIV: delight) in it all. With this revealed understanding of what God was doing, he could rejoice that the Father’s will was being done.
We operate too much out of assumption rather than hearing from God.v Paul was assuming the problem (buffeter) needed to be removed. To his credit, he persisted in prayer until he received revelation from God on the matter. Very often people make the opposite assumption. They assume God wants them to have the harassment, the sickness, whatever the problem may be. But that assumption may be incorrect as well. Look at all the healings Jesus did in the gospels. What if the woman with the issue of blood had just assumed her ailment was the will of God? She would have never pressed in and gotten healed. What if blind Bartimaeus had assumed his blindness was a gift from God? He would not have exercised the faith to be healed.
Paul began with the most logical assumption. As a general rule, messengers from Satan are to be driven out. It was a good starting point. But Paul did not live his life based on general rules alone. He lived in relationship with the Lord, and that included hearing his instruction for specific situations. Paul aligned himself with that instruction. So, this brings us to the first key for answered prayer.
I. PRAY ACCORDING TO THE WILL OF THE FATHER.
Jesus taught us to pray, “Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven” (Matt. 6:10). Prayer is not me trying to get God to do something he doesn’t want to do. Effective
prayer is me discovering and submitted to the will of the Father. Then participating in the execution of that will through intercession.
In 2 Corinthians 12, Paul was persistent in prayer until he heard from God that the prayer needed to change.vi Persistence is important. Jesus illustrated this in the Parable of the Unjust Judge. Luke revealed the point of that story when he introduced it in Luke 18:1, “Then He [Jesus] spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray and not lose heart.” Using our best understanding of the Father’s will, we persevere in prayer. But we stay open to any adjustment of that prayer that God may give us.
The key to answered prayer is alignment with the will of God. It is not found in the volume of prayers. In Matthew 6:7 Jesus said, “And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words.” It’s not the number of times you tell God the problem. The answer comes in the context of two-way conversation with God. To receive, we do need to ask (James 4:2). But we also need to listen. Listen so that we can keep our petitions aligned with the will of the Father. Knowing God’s will is usually a process, as it was for Paul in 2 Corinthians 12.
In his first epistle, the Apostle John emphasized praying according to God’s will. He wrote, “Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. 15 And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him” (1 John 5:14-15).vii
Knowing Scripture can help us pray in the will of God. But apply the principles of the word to specific situations requires the guidance of the Holy Spirit as well. There may be aspects of that situation that we know nothing about. A man came forward for prayer in one of our services. He needed healing in his back. But my prayer for him was totally ineffective. I finally stopped and asked him a few questions about his ailment. In that conversation, it came out that he was on government disability. Although he wanted relief from the pain, he did not want to lose the disability check and have to go to work. There was a reason we were getting no where in prayer. That doubleminded thinking needed to be corrected (James 1:6-8). Healing is a gift from God. But when we put those kinds of conditions on the answer, the petition will most likely not be granted. A first principle for effective prayer is total surrender to the will of God.
II. KNOW THE ONE YOU ARE PETITIONING.
In the Lord’s Prayer, the first thing Jesus taught when praying was to say, “Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name” (Matt. 6:9). Obviously, praying to a false god is not effective. We all understand that. But there is more in Jesus’s instruction than that.
We must begin with an understanding of our relationship with the Creator of the Universe. We do not come to him as strangers or outsiders. In Christ, we have been made a part of the family of God. We have been born again of the divine seed. We are now children of the Most High. And with that relationship comes privilege.
Romans 8:14-17 says,
“For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. 15 For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, ‘Abba, Father.’ 16 The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs — heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ. . . .”
It is every father’s delight to give good things to his children. Even a man who is stingy toward those outside his household, will often want his kids to have the best he can give them. And that is only a dim reflection of the Father’s heart toward his children. God wants the very best for you! As you approach him in prayer, you have to know that in your heart. You are not approaching a reluctant sovereign. He is sovereign, and that means he has the resources necessary to grant your request. But it is his good pleasure to give you the kingdom (Luke 12:32). “No good thing will He withhold From those who walk uprightly” (Ps. 84:11).
When we say, “Our Father,” we are reminded of the relationship we have with Almighty God. Our faith is strengthened by those two words; “Our Father.” Our confidence in God’s willingness to grant the request is made strong. Therefore, we can ask in faith knowing that the one we are petitioning is in loving relationship with us. We ask knowing that he is able and willing to answer the prayer. Your level of understanding those two words matter: “Our Father.”
Our attitude must be one of comfort and assurance. But it is also to be one of reverence for God’s nature and authority. Especially in the culture of Jesus’s day, the father was respected by the children. He was the provider, the disciplinarian, and the leader of the family. “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” (Prov. 9:10). Our relationship with God is intimate, as we have already discussed. But it is also respectful. God is not your bellboy. We petition him; we do not command him.viii
He is not only to be respected because of his role as the Father, but he is respected for his upright character. We remind ourselves of that when we say, “Hallowed be Your name.” His name represents who he is, and he is holy. He is to be highly regarded by all, especially his own children. “Hallowed be Your name.” implies praise and adoration. But that rests on the foundation of our high regard for him as the Holy One who is upright in all that he does.
Effectiveness in prayer depends on our concept of God. If we view him as a harsh, tyrant who is disturbed that we even ask, then we cannot pray in faith. If we come respecting his holiness, remembering his all-sufficient ability to answer the request, and resting in his love toward us as his dear children, then we are in the right frame of mind to present our requests to him. The more accurately and intimately we know God, the more effectively we can pray.
III. PRAY WITH THANKSGIVING.
Psalm 92 opens with the declaration, “It is good to give thanks to the Lord, And to sing praises to Your name, O Most High.” There again we see the high regard for who God is. The humanistic philosophies undermine that in people’s mind. But we will celebrate the majesty and glory of the Lord our God.
Thanksgiving keeps everything in perspective. Life is challenging. Problems are many. We have to give attention to the problems we face. But we can get so focused on the problems that we fail to see God who has a solution to all those problems. That’s why Philippians 4:6 instructs us to
mix large portions of thanksgiving in with our petitions to God. “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.” Those two words are important: “with thanksgiving.”
Thanksgiving calms our anxieties. Thanksgiving reminds us of God’s faithfulness in the past and helps us to expect his faithfulness in the present. Thanksgiving puts the problems we face in the context of God’s goodness. Thanksgiving strengthens our ability to pray in faith. And without faith it is impossible to please God (Heb. 11:6).
When the disciples asked Jesus about answered prayer, he said to them, “Have faith in God” (Mark 11:22). Faithless prayers are ineffective prayers. Based on who God is and our relationship with him, we expect an answer; not because we deserve it, but because God is good, and God is faithful.
Colossians 4:2 reinforces the importance of thanksgiving in our prayer life. “Continue earnestly in prayer, being vigilant in it with thanksgiving.” A thankful heart is rightly postured before God to receive the answer. A thankful person is prone to give God the glory for answered prayer because the person his continually reminding himself that “every good gift comes from above” (James 1:17).
Thanksgiving is something anyone can do. You don’t have to be brilliant or talented to simply say, “Thank you.” We are all without excuse. No one can say, “It was too hard for me to do that; I tried but I just couldn’t do it.” If you’re not being thankful, it’s a heart problem, not an ability problem. Even a child can do it. Practice gratitude, and life will be better. Count your blessings and forget not all his benefits (Ps. 103:2). You’ll be amazed how brighter the world becomes. It is a powerful antidote to depression. And it strengthens our faith.
When beaten with rods and thrown into prison in Acts 15, Paul and Silas gave thanks to the Lord. It broke open the prison doors and brought salvation to the jailer. Teaching on this concept, Merlin Carothers wrote a book entitled, Prison to Praise. Praise may not be the cure-all as Carothers seems to suggest, but it cures an awful lot of issues.
IV. PRAY SPECIFICALLY.
Make your prayers specific enough that when the problem is solved, you can recognize it as an answer from God. If I pray, “God bless China,” how will I know that he answered that prayer? Develop a cycle your life that makes specific petitions God with faith and thanksgiving; expectantly watches for the answer; thanks God for the answer as new petitions are being made.
Tell God specifically what you need. Know that your Heavenly Fathers hears you when you pray. Listen for his instruction, expect the answer. And when the answer comes, be faithful to give God the glory for meeting the need.
Sometimes we don’t have faith to ask for the whole need all at once. Sometimes we ask for the next step because God has given us faith for that. I am currently writing a book. It’s a big project. Of course, I want God’s grace to write the whole draft, edit it effectively, publish it, and make it available to people. But I’ve found that its effective for me to simply ask God to grace me each step of the way. The book is an exposition of Jesus’s Beatitudes.
This week my petition has been that God would give me wisdom to write the chapters on the sixth beatitude: “Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God” (Matt. 5;8). Next week I will be asking God to help me expound the seventh beatitude: “Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God” (Matt. 5:9). But while I make that petition, I will be thanking him for the way he led me through the previous beatitude. There were specific requests made last week. There was a book I needed and couldn’t find. I prayed and God led me to the book. It might be considered a small win, but it was a win, and it strengthened my faith for the next prayer. God wants to partner with us in life, and he wants us communicating with him during our daily tasks.
V. EXPECT THE ANSWER.
Is your life devoted to doing the will of the Father (2 Cor. 5:9). Then why wouldn’t he partner with you in accomplishing that will? Why wouldn’t he meet your needs along the way? He has been faithful to you in the past. Why wouldn’t he continue to be faithful.ix
Israel saw God’s faithfulness during the plagues on Egypt. They saw his faithfulness at the Red Sea. Yet they did not believe him to provide water in the wilderness. Instead of petitioning him with thanksgiving, they murmured and complained about the conditions. It displeased the Lord. Their unbelief cost them the Promise Land.x
You should expect the goodness of the Lord in your life, just as David did when he said in Psalm 23:6, “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life.” Will there be trials and challenges in the days ahead? Of course, there will.xi But the hidden factor that makes all the difference is that God is with you. He will be with you in the valleys and on the mountains. He will never leave you, nor forsake you (Heb. 13:5). And if God is for you, who can be against you (Rom. 8:31). Your business is to do the will of the Father. His business is to see to that you make it just fine.
In Mark 11 Jesus and the disciples were on their way to Jerusalem. On their way, Jesus cursed a fig tree saying, “Let no one eat fruit from you ever again" (v. 4).xii After their stay in Jerusalem, they came back by the fig tree. Peter noticed that the tree withered away. So, he pointed out to Jesus that the prayer cursing the tree had been answered. Jesus used that occasion to teach them the importance of faith. He said to them in Mark 11:22-24,
"Have faith in God. 23 For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be removed and be cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. 24 Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.”
The prayer that is spoken must proceed from a heart that believes. In the Bible, a person’s heart is the inner soul and spirit. It’s more than the mind. It’s more than emotions. The will is also involved. The combined inner workings of the spirit, mind and will must believe. The answer must be received and embraced in the heart, producing a confident expectation of the fulfillment. Over the years we have learned that there is something deeper about this that just thinking and talking positive. The heart as a whole, the inner core of the person, must be properly postured toward God. “Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God” (Matt. 5:8). They shall see God act. They shall see the answer with the eye of faith, and they will see that answer manifested.
An essential factor is having a “pure heart.”xiii Anything that obstructs this confidence in God must be removed. How do we know that is the case? Because Jesus immediate says in verses 25-26, “And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. 26 But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses."
Remove the obstruction of unforgiveness. Out of a pure heart, believe for the answer. Hebrews 10:22 instructs, “Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience. . . .” The full assurance of faith comes as the conscience has been properly cleansed. If, as I stand in prayer, I am harboring ought against another in my heart, I cannot pray with the faith Jesus is talking about. And this is true no matter how positive I think or talk.
So, there is this factor of nurturing a pure heart, uncompromisingly loyal to the Lord, which is postured before God to believe for the answer. There is much about this that I am still learning. But I know two things: 1. The faith must be exercised at a deeper level than just thought, talk, and emotion. 2. The heart must be pure in order to function at this level of faith. Obstructions such as unforgiveness, lust, greed, etc. must be removed so that from the heart, the person does not doubt.
Conclusion:
This study is by no means exhaustive. We do not have all the answers. But we are learning. And we are praying. And we are expecting the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living (Ps. 27:13). We touched on five keys to effective prayer.
1. Pray according to the will of the Father.
2. Know the One you are petitioning.
3. Pray with thanksgiving.
4. Pray specifically.
5. Expect the answer.
Prayer:
Father, teach us to pray. Open our hearts to greater revelation in this area of our lives. Open our ears to hear your voice. Give us a pure heart that can function in faith at a higher level than we have known in the past. May we be wholly surrendered to you, always available to do your will. We are thankful for all that you do for us.
ENDNOTES:
i All Scripture quotes are from the New King James Version unless indicated otherwise.
ii Strong’s Concordance NT:2852.
iii Isa. 14:12-15; Ezek. 28:14-15. See C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity (HarperCollins, 1980), 121-128.
iv Cf. Isa. 55:8-9.
v Cf. John 10:27; Rev. 3:20.
vi Paul’s persistence is revealed in the fact that he prayed “three times that it might depart” from him (2 Cor 12:8).
vii For an exposition of this verse see Richard W. Tow, Authentic Christianity: Studies in 1 John (Bloomington, IN: WestBow Press, 2019), 367-380.
viii In the context of Isaiah 45:11, God is appalled that his people would dare to command him. The NIV correctly translates the verse as a question: "This is what the LORD says-- the Holy One of Israel, and its Maker: Concerning things to come, do you question me about my children, or give me orders about the work of my hands?” Using the KJV some have been misled to think the verse authorizes them to command God. This is shockingly inaccurate. Verse 10 that precedes the statement says, “Woe to him who says to his father, 'What are you begetting?' Or to the woman, 'What have you brought forth?' " In verse 12-13 that follow the statement, God declares his authority to command and direct, not his people’s authority to direct him.
ix Cf. 1 Sam. 17:34-37.
x See Ps. 78; Heb. 3:12-19.
xi Cf. Acts 14:22.
xii We will not take time in this message to explain this unusual act.
xiii A pure heart is uncompromised in its loyalty to the Lord; surrendered to the will of God. In Matthew 6:21-24 Jesus taught that our life purpose must be to please the Lord (2 Cor. 5:9; Phil. 3:13-14). We must not allow the pursuit of material riches or anything else compete with that goal.
