Why?
(1) Because much of the preaching that preachers preach about today is about PRIVATE PRAYERS only.
(2) They SELDOM EVER preach on PUBLIC PRAYERS making the distinction between PUBLIC and PRIVATE.
Both of these kinds of prayers are taught throughout the scriptures and should be preached.
I. First, let’s talk about PUBLIC PRAYERS.
Now some folks do not actually believe in PUBLIC PRAYERS.
They feel that the Bible teaches everything we do as Christians should be done PRIVATELY, such as praying and giving.
They feel this way because they believe the Bible teaches these things should be done PRIVATELY.
Generally, these people who believe this are good godly sincere Christians, but they are ABSOLUTELY ignorant what the Bible teaches about PRIVATE PRAYERS.
For example, Dr. Odell Belger had this man that attended his church and when the offering was taken up PUBLICLY, he would not put anything in the offering plate.
• He would wait after the church service when everyone was leaving, he walked by the offering plates and when he saw no one was looking he dropped his tithes and offering in the offering plate.
• If the offering plates were not available, he would give it privately to Dr. Belger to put his tithes and offerings in for him.
He felt the same way about PUBLIC PRAYERS.
When God’s Word is teaching about these things in PUBLIC God is talking about MOTIVES,
• That is, if we do these things to be seen of mankind, we certainly should not be PRAYING AND GIVING publicly for the wrong reason.
• But when they are done for the right MOTIVE, we should practice PRIVATE PRAYERS and PUBLIC GIVING.
For example, each Sunday before the offering is received someone is called on to lead the congregation into a PUBLIC PRAYER.
Now since we were not called upon to lead in this public prayer what are we supposed to be doing during this time!
We should be listening to the words of that prayer and agreeing with the words that are being publicly spoken.
For example, the one leading in the prayer might be saying in their prayer…
• Lord, we worship you--- WE AGREE!
• Lord, we love you---WE AGREE!
• Lord uses this offering to reach the lost with the gospel---WE AGREE!
God’s Word has many passages that teach PUBLIC PRAYERS where someone is leading the congregation in prayer.
For example, let me give you two examples…
(1) The Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13)
We read “This, then, is how you should pray: ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.’”
Notice the Lord gave the example by using these words but notice the word “Our” which is plural which means more than one.
The Lord’s Prayer is a public prayer that covers worship, petition, and confession.
The prayer asks for God’s kingdom to come and for His will to be done on earth.
• It then moves to personal petitions for daily needs, forgiveness, and protection from evil.
• The Lord’s Prayer is concise but profound, covering the essentials of Christian prayer: praise, petition, and reliance on God.
• It serves as a guide for both private and public prayers, emphasizing the importance of reverence, trust, and submission to God’s will.
The Lord Himself is giving us an example of PUBLIC PRAYER.
Let me give you another example…
(2) Solomon’s Prayer of Dedication (1 Kings 8:22-53)
“Then Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in front of the whole assembly of Israel, spread out his hands toward heaven and said: ‘Lord, the God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven above or on earth below…’”
• Solomon asked God to bless the newly constructed temple, which was meant to be a permanent dwelling for God among His people.
• Solomon speaks to God, but his prayer serves as a public declaration for the entire nation.
• He prays for God’s forgiveness, guidance, and protection.
• His prayer emphasizes God’s covenant with Israel and the importance of keeping His commandments.
Throughout the scriptures we see great men and women of God PRAYING PUBLICLY.
So, when someone is leading in PUBLIC PRAYER we should be listening to the words of that prayer, and we are in agreement IN THE THINGS THEY ARE PRAYING.
Illus: It is like this when the preacher is preaching you can hear some folks saying Aman! Why? They are showing they are in agreement to what is being preached.
However, sometime PUBLIC PRAYING IS often ABUSED…
For example…
(1) Some use it for a time of BRAGGING
For example, when some are called upon to pray, they feel that a platform has been given to them to public proclaim how great they are for as much time as they desire…
A good example of this is in the scriptures.
Look at Luke 18:10-14 Two men went up into the temple to pray: the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess. And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. I tell you; this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for everyone that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.
Notice:
• The Bible tells us this man the Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself.
• He wasn’t talking to God He was bragging before mankind of how great He was…NOT GOD!
Next, the Bible tells us this man began to brag about himself in verses 10-11, “God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.”
• Now when he got through, he probably expected everyone would start to sing, HOW GREAT THOU ART!!!
• But if most of us had heard him bragging about himself the way he, did we would have gotten up and PUKED!!!
The reason we do not like to hear a man/woman brag on themselves is because what they are doing is telling us they are better than we are!!!
Notice in this passage of scripture this Pharisee said in his prayer “I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. I fast twice in the week; I give tithes of all that I possess.”
Praying is not bragging about US IT IS BRAGGING ABOUT GOD.
Prayer is often ABUSED!
But I confess my heart has received a blessing in hearing some pray PUBLICLY.
It is interesting to listen to prayers. Each person has his own unique way of praying.
Illus: For example, Dr. Odell Belger led a man to the Lord late in life that lived in Columbia, South Carolina.
He was a slow talking southerner. When he prayed publicly, everyone enjoyed listening to him because of his slow southern drawl, and because of his humility and sincerity in serving the Lord.
It sounded like he was having a private conversation with the Lord, and you felt like you were listening in on the conversation.
One Sunday morning, the pastor called on him to pray over some special needs in the church, and in that slow southern drawl he prayed a simple prayer to the Lord.
When he got through with his prayer he said, “Lord, that is all I can think of now, I will talk to you later!”
It is so refreshing to hear some folks pray. They are not out trying to impress anyone; they are simply talking to the Lord the way we talk with our best friend.
Illus: They are like the man who prayed in church, and when he got through, a man stood up and said, “I could not hear you!”
He said, “That’s because I wasn’t talking to you.”
Some use prayer for the right purpose, TO TALK TO GOD.
NOW I HAVE A CONFESSION TO MAKE. There is one kind of PUBLIC PRAYING that I do not like and I am not sure it is scriptural.
Illus: Dr. Odell Belger was preaching a revival meeting and before church on of the fellows said,
“Preacher, we are going back here in the prayer room and pray for the service tonight.
I said, “Cetainly, I will join you”.
He went in this room, and it was about twenty-five fellows there. And one fellow said, “Ok, let’s pray for the service,
And all of a sudden, they knelt on their knees and started praying. And all twenty-five of them began to pray loudly at the same time and I tried to pray but I couldn’t concentrate!!!
Can you imagine what it would be like trying to talk and twenty-five men are talking loudly at the same time.
I could not, I tried! I did manage to tell the Lord; I WILL TALK TO HIM LATER!
The bible teaches God is not the AUTHOR OF CONFUSION. So, I do not believe in this kind of PUBLIC PRAYING.
We have talked about PUBLIC PRAYERS but now let us take a few minutes and talk about…
II.PRIVATE PRAYERS.
One of the greatest prayers in the Bible is found in our scripture text today by a man that many people call “THE PRAYER OF JABEZ”.
This prayer teaches us so many things about prayer.
Let’s look at what it teaches us.
First, let us look at…
I. THE PLEA OF JABEZ
Jabez has long since gone to be with His Maker, but yet all over the world preachers like me still preach about this great man of God.
In 1 Chronicles chapters 1 through 9 we have a list of endless genealogies.
We read over and over in these chapters that “So and so begat so and so”.
As we come across this list of names in 1 Chronicles and come to the name of Jabez the Word of God ceases to tell us SO AND SO BEGAT SO AND SO!!!
The Bible takes two verses to tell us a few things about Jabez on that list.
Look at 1 Chronicles 4:9-10, we read, “And Jabez was more honourable than his brethren: and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, because I bare him with sorrow. And Jabez called on the God of Israel, saying, oh that thou wouldest bless me indeed, and enlarge my coast, and that thine hand might be with me, and that thou wouldest keep me from evil, that it may not grieve me! And God granted him that which he requested.”
God’s Word had these nice things to say about him.
Listen, one day you and I will no longer be here. What will people be saying about us after we have departed to be with the Lord?
• Most people live their lives for the short range, and after they die, they are soon forgotten.
• But others have learned to live their lives for the long haul, and centuries after they are dead and gone, people are still talking about them.
Illus: All presidents, when they leave office, they want to leave a legacy behind them so people will remember the many things they accomplished during their tenure in the White House.
For example:
• President Eisenhower for his love for the game of golf
• President Kennedy will be remembered for the great words, “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.”
• President Johnson for the great society.
• President Nixon will be known for Watergate.
• President Ford for his clumsiness.
• President Carter for the hostages in Iran.
• President Reagan for ending the cold war and tearing down the Berlin walls.
• President Bush for forming the coalition to defeat Saddam Hussein.
• President Clinton as a womanizer.
When you are no longer here, what will people remember about you?
Illus: As you read through these Bible genealogies in 1 Chronicles chapters 1-9, all you read about some of these people is that SO AND SO BEGAT SO and they DIED!
They are so typical of many today that lived and die. They really do not accomplish that much in their lives because about the only thing they live for each day is for them.
Illus: They are no more than a stain on a garment that eventually will wash out, and no one will remember they ever existed.
Illus: But something that many of the military men and women do is marking their clothes with a pen that has indelible ink. That is, they can wash their clothes over and over again, and that ink leaves an indelible mark that cannot be washed out.
Such is the case with Jabez. Centuries have come and gone, and we still find ourselves talking about this man. WHAT AN INDELIBLE MARK HE HAS MADE ON THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH.
• He was not a great prophet or preacher, like Isaiah or Jeremiah
• He was not a wise ruler over a great nation like Solomon
• He was not famous on the field of battle like King David
He was remembered for two things:
(1) Because he was “More Honorable than his brethren”
(2) Because of his prayer
Let’s concentrate on this prayer he prayed.
Look at…
II. THE PRAYER OF JABEZ
His prayer reveals that he was not happy with things the way they were.
In this modern age we have many conveniences.
One is the modern thermostat that keeps the temperature of our homes, schools and churches at a comfort level that we can enjoy.
It was not always this way.
Illus: Some can remember having to stand beside an old potbelly stove, or a fireplace, to get warm. And these potbelly stoves and fireplaces produced plenty of heat. HOWEVER, THE ONLY PROBLEM WAS YOU COULD ONLY HEAT ONE SIDE OF YOUR BODY AT A TIME.
But today with the duct systems in our homes and churches, the heat or air-conditioning is balanced so that the temperature is the same in every area of the building.
These modern thermostats have an automatic switch on them to switch back and forth from heat to air-conditioning to make the proper adjustments as needed.
But I am not sure that this has helped us as a church.
• For example, it used to be that in the summertime, preachers did not have to be concerned with people getting cozy and going to sleep in our churches.
Illus: They would open up all the…
(1) Windows in the sanctuary and bring in a few
(2) Electric fans if they had any and give everyone a
(3) Bulletin or a hand fan to survive the heat.
The congregation stayed awake by…
(1) Fanning themselves,
(2) And by spitting out the gnats that were flying around trying to get into their ears and mouths.
• In the wintertime, the preacher did not have to worry about them getting cozy and going to sleep, because the people sitting in the congregation were so cold, they were not scattered all over the sanctuary they set close to each other trying to stay warm.
And the fatter you were the more friends you had!!!
Some time it was so cold that when you breathed, you could see the vapor from their breath.
Today we have reached a comfort level when it comes to temperature, and people are prone to doze.
Illus: In fact, I think some of you get more rest in church than you do at home
We have these…
(1) Comfortable pews
(2) Ideal climate controls, and it is getting difficult to keep people awake these days.
The same thing has happened to our churches spiritually.
Many of them have reached a “Comfort Level”, and it is difficult to get people stirred up for the Lord when they get “Cozy”.
• They are satisfied with the nice buildings they worship in
• They are satisfied with their attendance
• They are satisfied with their giving
• They are satisfied with the number of missionaries they support
When a church reaches this COMFORT ZONE, they are in trouble. They become complacent and self-satisfied.
Their attitude is, “Why make any changes, after all we are as cozy as we can be.”
To keep this from happening to us as a Christian Church, we need to pray from our hearts the same prayer that Jabez prayed.
He went down in the history book as a great man of God because he was not content with things the way they were.
You can tell what kind of man he was by the prayer he prayed.
For example.
A. HE PRAYED FOR SPIRITUAL PROSPERITY
Look at 1 Chronicles 4:9 “And Jabez was more honorable than his brethren: and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, because I bare him with sorrow. And Jabez called on the God of Israel, saying, oh that thou wouldest bless me indeed…”
God’s Word says that you have not because you ask not.
Many go through life never having the blessings of God because they never seek them.
We live in an age when:
• Everyone is praying for the ten-million-dollar sweepstakes
• Everyone is praying for a new house and new car
• Everyone is praying for power and fame
When is the last time you heard anyone pray for SPIRITUAL BLESSINGS!
Illus: Dr. Odell Belger tells the story before he went to Bible College he worked for Sears. He worked in the DELIVERY department as a helper to the driver.
The driver would drive to the home for a delivery and before they would unload, they would send their helper to the door to see if anyone was home.
Dr. Belger said they went to a home, and he got out of the truck to go and ring the doorbell to see if anyone was home.
The house was an L-shaped and the front door was in the middle of the L-shape.
He said when he got near the house, he could hear someone was in the house. He said when he reached out to ring the bell he heard a mother praying for her children.
He said later he will never forget the desperation of her prayer. He said he could tell she was crying, and she was praying GOD SAVE MY CHILDREN. I DON’T WANT THEM TO DIE AND GO TO HELL! GOD SAVE MY CHILDREN!
She was heartbroken for her lost children.
He never rung the bell but went and got back in the DELIVERY truck. The driver said WHY DIDN’T YOU RING THE BELL?
He told the driver; I am not going to ring that bell because there is a mother in their praying for her lost children in such away, I have never heard a mother pray for her children. We will have to come back later!!!
When is the last time you heard someone pray for spiritual blessings.
• God, I want to get closer to you
• God, I want to win a lost soul to the Lord this week
• God, I want to be used in teaching my Sunday school class this week
• God, I want you to anoint me to preach thy Word.
Illus: Some say, Preacher, I noticed that you do not preach before you preach.
Listen, if I have waited that long to pray before I preach God’s Word I HAVE WAITED TO LONG TO PRAY!!!
The television preachers have done great harm to the work of God.
They tell people that it is the will of God for them to be millionaires, and by the thousands they believe this stuff.
Listen; if everyone were a millionaire, it would wreck our economy. TALK ABOUT INFLATION!
People in the business world charge as much as they feel the public will pay. When people have plenty of money, they keep buying and the prices keep going up.
Jabez was not praying for the sweepstakes, he was praying for God to bless him spiritually.
He was not satisfied with the status quo. He wanted God's blessings upon his life. He prayed “Oh that thou wouldest bless me indeed…”
He recognized what was most important in life.
B. HE PRAYED FOR BROADENED HORIZONS
Look at verse 10, we read, "Enlarge my coast.”
• The word “enlarge” means simply to make larger, to extend in limits or dimensions, to extend to more purposes or uses.
• The word “coast” here is used to refer to boundaries and borders.
His desire was to reach out beyond himself...to expand his sphere of influence.
Illus: I love to read about John Hyde. They called him “Praying Hyde”
Why?
Because he prayed for God to help him win a soul to the Lord each day in India.
John Hyde's prayer life ranks in a league with the prayer lives of George Mueller and Charles Finney.
If you wish to learn to pray effectively, you can have no better example than the life of John Hyde.
He won so many souls to the Lord when he died the people of India said, “You can take him back to America, but before you do cut his heart out and leave it with us in India because this is where his heart is.”
The prayer of every Christian should be, “Lord, I want to do more for you than I am doing now. Lord enlarge my coast!!!
• I want to love you more than I love you now.
• I want to win more souls than I have won.
• I want to be used in grater way to advance the work of God.
C. HE PRAYED THAT GOD’S HAND WOULD BE WITH HIM
Look at verse 10 again. We read, “…And that thine hand might be with me.”
Jabez recognized that everything that comes into our life is because of the hand of God in our life.
• Notice that he prayed that the hand of God, “…might be with me”. He did not want the hand of God against him.
• When a man or a woman is not going by what this Bible teaches, the hand of God is AGAINST THEM.
The Bible says Jabez was an honorable man, and he prayed, “God, I WANT YOUR HAND WITH ME!”
D. HE PRAYED FOR DELIVERANCE FROM SIN
Look at verse 10. We read, “…and that thou wouldest keep me from evil, that it may not grieve me!”
Jabez was well aware that we Christians may fall into sin.
But notice that he knew what sin can do to our lives.
He said, he wanted God to keep him from evil.
Why?
He said “that it may not grieve me!”
There is no doubt there is pleasure in sin, but after the sin comes the GRIEVING start!!!
The devil tells us that sin brings happiness and joy to our lives, but the fact is that sin brings only grief to our lives.
E. GOD ANSWERED HIS PRAYERS
Look at verse 10 again. We read, “And God granted him that which he requested.”
Many times, the reason nothing is coming down from above is because nothing is going up.
This great man of God prayed, and the Bible says, “…God granted him that which he requested.” I
It pays to pray! But it pays to pray the right kind of prayers.
Jabez prayed the right kind of prayers and God answered them.
Conclusion:
There are several things we need to consider before we close.
• Suppose Jabez was not an honorable man.
Do you think that God would have done these things in his life?
• Suppose Jabez had not prayed this prayer.
Do you think that God would have done these things in his life anyway?
These things never would have been done in his life.
But something we have to always remember is that God’s blessings are not always in what He gives, but sometimes in what He withholds.
This is why Jabez prayed for God to bless Him indeed. So often what we call a blessing is not a blessing but a curse.
Jabez wanted God’s blessings indeed.
I.THE PLEA OF JABEZ
II. THE PRAYER OF JABEZ
