Let us pray.
Let me ask you guys a question before we get right to our topic. How many of you are waiting on God to answer a specific prayer? Okay, how many of you are wondering why these prayers haven't been answered yet?
Well this session is to explain and explore hindrances to our powerful prayers and how we can overcome them.
Like many of us, most Christians are also struggling with the question; why my prayers remain unanswered?
So we will look at several scriptures and dive deep into its teachings.
First reason why some prayers remain unanswered is that :
1. We pray with the wrong motives.
James 4:3
New International Version
3 When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.
Well this may come as a shock to some of you that One of the reasons prayers are unanswered because of wrong motives. See GOD knows what is in our hearts. Maybe you are asking for things with a hidden agenda. How easy it is to forget that God weighs the motives of the heart, and our motives are never hidden from His sight.
There's a story about a man in his 50's who approached a pastor and asked for prayers. He told the pastor to pray for him as he was not in good standing with his father for 10 years now. So he asked the pastor to pray that God moves in the heart of his father to forgive him. So basically he was asking for a prayer of forgiveness. Ofcourse to the eyes of the pastor; this is a powerful prayer and he was moved to ask the man. You know many come to me for prayers about increase in wealth, increase in belongings and property's and I was really moved with your prayers about forgiveness. I was just wondering what prompted you to ask for this prayer?
The man replied to him that his father was dying and his father was a billionaire. He wanted to make sure he was part of his inheritance will and so he asked to pray that his father forgives him.
So it was clear to the pastor that the man was seeking forgiveness for selfish gain instead of a restored relationship. He couldv'e also asked for prayers for longer life for his dad right? Or healing for his dad. Buit no, he had his own agenda and God knows the motives of our heart. It is never hidden from him.
Have you ever wondered why prayers about winning the lotto never comes to pass. Even if we say that LORD, if I win this lotto, I will give all the winnings to my church, so that we can fund missionaries to go around the world. On the surface' this looks and sounds like good motivations right. But what we think is right; is not right in the eyes of God. God is more interested in your
2. WE HARBOR Bitterness, rage, anger and unforgiveness.
Ephesians 4:31-32 Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. 32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.
Again this pierces through the heart. Many prayers are being hindered because of the condition of our hearts.
Think of bitterness, rage and anger and unforgiveness against someone like a solid wall that hinders your prayers from passing through. At the root of it all really, is unforgiveness.
Verse 32 of the same chapter that we just read says:
Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.
Also Jesus said in Mark 11:25, NLT: "But when you are praying, first forgive anyone you are holding a grudge against, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your sins, too.'"
Unforgiveness hinders your prayers. Unforgiveness clouds your heart and mind and perhaps even mires your motives. Perhaps some of you are thinking. Amar, how can I forgive someone who is not even asking for forgiveness? How can I forgive when he or she doesn’t even feel sorry for what he did to me! Or how can I forgive someone when clearly they think the have done nothing wrong to me.
Well if you read the verse again, it does not say forgive ONLY when they ask for forgiveness. No, it say FIRST FORGIVE - be the first. First forgive anyone you are holding a grudge against. This word Grudge holds many meanings. It's resentment, you have resentment or hatred, animosity or even injustice, bad blood, sama nang loob. All of these are wrapped around the word grudge. So before praying; First forgive regardless if the person didn’t ask forgiveness.
Harboring of bitterness or anger and unforgiveness also penetrates the household especially husbands and wives. The devil is very keen in ruining families because the ties the bind husband and wives are very strong. And when this is shattered, not only are the children affected but generations after them are affected as well.
There a particular verse in 1 Peter 3:5 that talks about honoring your wife, treating them with respect as a way for prayers to get through to GOD. Lets look at the verse:
1 Peter 3:5 NKJV - A Word to Husbands
7 Husbands, likewise, dwell with them with understanding, giving honor to the wife, as to the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life, that your prayers may not be hindered.
So that your prayers may not be hindered. This verse ties in closely with our earlier verse in Ephesians. As husbands as heads of households we are sort of the embodiment of Christ in the family. Our actions oftentimes speak louder that our words and oftentimes this is what our kids measure the words that we speak. At the back of their feeble minds, what kids see you do as a father is what shapes their thinking of right and wrong. SO when we honor our wife and treat them with respect. Our children mirror the same. So again do you want your prayers to be unhampered , treat your wife with honor and respect. I can almost feel the wives in this ZOOM room kind of smiling and are happy with this verse. Hahaha. But see honor and showing respect does not mean submission. Wives are to submit to their husbands. We know this. And we also know that wives are to obey their husbands; to love their husbands. Did you know that the prayers of our wives are powerful. Yes, they are.
Praying for your husband is like inviting God into your marriage. HE is the third strand. God is the third strand in the cord that cannot be broken. So maybe your praying that your husband gives you everything you ask from HIM. Or that he pays for alll your orders in LAZADA or Shopee. OR that he does not see the purchases that you have made. Almost every hour theres a delivery in your doorstep. Hahahaha.
No; that is a prayer that will definitely be hindered. Again check your motives. Pray for your husbands; Pray that
That God would bless the work of his hands (Deuteronomy 28:12).
That he would do his work as unto the Lord (Colossians 3:23).
That he would trust God with his burdens (Matthew 11:28-30).
That he would have godly friends who encourage him (Ecclesiastes 4:9-10a),
That he would take captive his thoughts (2 Corinthians 10:5).
PRAY That the influence your have over your husband would point to Jesus (1 Peter 3:1-2).
So wives pray for your husbands. Husbands, honor and respect your wives so that your prayers are not hindered.
Is there someone you are holding a grudge against? Is there someone who you are resenting right now? Maybe he or she did something really bad without even realizing it? LET's us pray, let us release forgiveness. Right now..
Father in the name of your son Jesus………
3. Unconfessed sin
Psalm 66:16-20 NIV
Come and hear, all you who fear God; let me tell you what he has done for me.
I cried out to him with my mouth; his praise was on my tongue.
If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened;
but God has surely listened and has heard my prayer.
Praise be to God, who has not rejected my prayer or withheld his love from me!
Notice that the Psalmist here is talking about you know Praising God, Crying out to God in praise. Right and then he inserts this critical verse in the passage - IF I HAD CHERISHED SIN in my heart, the LORD would not have listened.
So meaning if he embraced the sin or cultivated the sin or preserved the sin in his heart. Some of us might be harboring a sin issue that we cant seem to let go. It preserved in our hearts. And perhaps even we think of it as its normal already maybe because probably it is so accepted in this world. And here in lies the danger of it all.
James 5:16
New International Version
16 Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.
So how do you know if there is sin harboring in your heart? Well spend some serious time with GOD and ask the Holy Spirit to root out any sin that may be stuck in your heart. Sin that may have already created a lump in your heart that needs some surgical procedure from God. And HE will answer you. HE will help you uproot it.
Tied to unconfessed sin is our next reason for hindrances to powerful prayer and that is DISOBEDIENCE:
1 John 3:21-22
New International Version
21 Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God 22 and receive from him anything we ask, because we keep his commands and do what pleases him.
Another verse says it this way:
1 John 3:21-22
New Living Translation
21 Dear friends, if we don’t feel guilty, we can come to God with bold confidence. And we will receive from him whatever we ask because we obey him and do the things that please him.
Now I say that Unconfessed sin and disobedience go hand in hand because if you are intent in letting go of a sin bondage that's holding you back, then the next step is to obey. To let go of your sin that is holding you prayers back. There is no point for the holy spirit to root out a sin issue when you are not actually prepared to let go. This is really a personal issue with GOD to be addressed if you want your prayers to be unhindered.
Next on our list is DOUBT. We doubt if our prayers will be answered. Especially when it is taking so long; we doubt.
Matthew 21:21
New King James Version
21 So Jesus answered and said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but also if you say to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ it will be done.
Jesus is the author and perfecter of our faith. Meaning our faith comes from God. BUT doubt is a decision we make. So when we doubt; its really an issue of trust. Isnt it. We doubt because we are unsure about standing with God. Doubt also leads to worrying.
Doubt hinders are prayers because its an issue of trusting in God. And when we don’t trust God it just means we don’t have faith in HIM right? To eliminate doubt; we must constantly dive deep in Gods word. Build a relationship with GOD. As you build a relationship with HIM; you get to know his character, his attributes; you get to peak into his mindset; understand his ways; you get to download wisdom and knowledge from HIM. It’s a win win situation. When we doubt we are left with our own abilities and strengths. We rely on our exhaustible strength rather than his inexhaustible power. And what can I say; the world is constantly pulling us to its fold, the world wants us to yearn for things that are contrary to God. Why; because it teaches us to be SELF - SUFFICIENT. But Christians should be GOD-Sufficient. We are intrigued and bewildered with stories of people who because SELF-MADE Millionaires, SELF-MADE Billionaires; There is no such thing. I don’t believe there is a Christian who is self-made.
Deuteronomy 8:18
New King James Version
18 “And you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth, that He may [a]establish His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day.
Finally, we will end with We Pray what is contrary to Gods Will.
1 John 5:14-15
New King James Version
Confidence and Compassion in Prayer
Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.
There is danger when we take scripture out of context. If we only read verse 15 which says - "And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him."
Putting it in context is actually including the verse before this which is verse 14 "Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us."
Sometimes our prayers are wrapped around the situation we are in right. For example. You're praying for promotion and it has been a year already and you haven't been promoted yet. So maybe GOD is actually trying to mold you to be better at what you are doing right now to deserve a promotion that you are seeking for. Sometimes we ask for God to change our circumstances BUT the same circumstance we are in right now is what God is using to mold your character.
Another example. We often ask for prayers for healing. Especially against debilitating disease. Say you are asking for healing from Cancer and Its taking so long for God to answer this prayer. Maybe God is using this cancer situation to identify certain areas in your life that needs to be tweaked. Like a change in your lifestyle; a change in the choices you make when it comes to food; a change in your environment.
All of this are really based on GODs will NOT our will. We have to seek His will and that takes effort and time and resources.
We love to hear testimonies of healing, of victory of accomplishments but we would rather not talk about what how GOD has molded the persons character to reach that point of healing or victory or accomplishment. One such case is when Jesus healed the leper in Matthew 8:1-3
Jesus Heals a Man With Leprosy
8 When Jesus came down from the mountainside, large crowds followed him. 2 A man with leprosy[a] came and knelt before him and said, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.”
3 Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” Immediately he was cleansed of his leprosy.
We love to hear the story of healing but can you imagine what this man had to go through before coming to Jesus.
I imagine the scene where Jesus is demonstrating his authoritative healing. Throngs of people gathered together with eyes locked on Jesus. Hordes of people probably squeezing each other to get a better view of the messiah in action. Then suddenly a small commotion, people moving to the side, people making room for a leper to pass through towards Jesus. Now Leprosy is disfiguring skin disease and the only treatment was quarantine. Lepers were separated from the community and required to yell “Unclean” to anyone who came near them . so this leper was an outcast because anyone who would touch a leper would be deemed ceremonially unclean. Imagine a known Covid19 patient walking in a busy street. People would be surely moving to the side or probably run far away. So it was risky for this man to approach Jesus. But he musters all the courage to do so. He was desperate and He had FAITH in Jesus. In humility, he knells before Jesus and asks him: “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.” It’s Like a prayer requests that says Lord, if it’s your will, please heal me. And immediately; Jesus replies, I am willing. Jesus touches the untouchable outcast; touching the highly contagious skin disease and the text says in verse 3, that immediately he was cleansed of his leprosy.
How often do we pray about healing? Maybe it’s a humble demand for God to move; to heal. This leper demonstrated humility in that he asked the Lord, if its according to your will, heal me. And we shouldn’t forget that.
1 John 1:9
9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
Isaiah 43:25-26
25 “I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more. 26 Review the past for me, let us argue the matter together; state the case for your innocence.
