Sermon Series: “The A.C.T.S. of Prayer”
(Inspired by a short book by E.W. Price Jr.)
Sermon #2: “C – Confession / T – Thanksgiving”
Series Text: Acts 1:14
Today’s Text: I John 1:8-10
OPENING JOKE: “A Lawyer will listen” A pastor was using a children’s sermon to teach the little boys and girls about prayer. He focused their attention on Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane and helped them see how he talked with God when he had a problem. The pastor then noted that when we have a problem we can talk with our parents, grandparents, friends, or the pastor. He sought to transition toward a more direct look at God’s role in prayer by asking, “Is there someone I haven’t named who will listen to our problems?” He got a surprising answer when a little boy shouted, “A lawyer?”
INTRODUCTION: In your bulletin you will notice that the National Day of Prayer is coming on May 5th, and on that Thursday we will open the church from 1 – 4 pm for anyone who would like to come and pray for our church, our nation and our world.
Quote: It was George Washington who said, “It is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits and humbly to implore His protection and favor.”
I encourage you all to be a part of this time of committed prayer
Last week we began our series called ‘The ACTS of prayer’
I want to remind you that ACTS is an acrostic, and last week we learned that the letter ‘A’ stands for affirmation of God’s presence and adoration of God’s person.
These two things we learned last week are the first things we should do when we enter into God’s presence:
- Realize that He is with us and that He cares for us
- Remember all of His glorious attributes
Illustration: “Priests Preparing to Go Into God’s Presence” In the Old Testament the priests would prepare themselves before going into God’s presence. They would wash their bodies, put on their priestly robes and offer up a sacrifice before they would enter into God’s holy place.
Quote: Our affirmation and adoration are likened to this act; we are preparing ourselves to meet with God by wrapping ourselves in the robe of His greatness and offering Him a sacrifice of praise.
This week we are going to discuss the next two essentials for drawing close to God in prayer
Illustration: “Who Moved” A man and women were riding in their truck and the women said, “We used to sit right next to each other when we rode, now we sit far apart. The man replied, “I haven’t moved”
Often times when we feel our relationship with God is not as close as we would like it to be we need to be reminded, “He hasn’t moved”
Question: What are the two things that keep us in moved up close with God?
I. Confession
a. In the Old Testament, the prophet Isaiah had a glorious experience of adoration
i. Isaiah chapter six describes him as having seen the Lord in all His holiness and glory, surrounded by His angels, high and lifted up
ii. As he was in complete adoration of God’s holiness, he immediately began praying a prayer of confession
iii. Isaiah 6:5 “So I said: "Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips, And I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, The Lord of hosts.”
iv. Upon recognizing how great God is, Isaiah also realized how sinful He was
b. That is the way it will be with most of us if we really move into God’s presence with adoration for Him
i. You see, we are all sinful
ii. Not one of us could stand before the Holy and perfect God of the universe and boast “I am good enough”
iii. And according to the Scriptures, it is our sin that separates us from God
iv. Isaiah 59:2 “But your iniquities have separated you from your God”
v. So if we are to have a fresh, personal relationship with God, these sin barriers must be confessed and removed
c. Let me clarify one doctrinal point
i. When we come to Christ and are born again the penalty of sin (Hell) is removed
ii. But the presence of sin remains
iii. We will not escape the presence of sin until we are in glory
iv. Quote: Until then we fight daily against sin, under the power of the Holy Spirit and confess and repent when we fail – not to get saved over and over again, but to stay in close fellowship with God the Father
v. So daily confession of sin is essential for our fellowship with God to stay fresh
d. Something we need to learn to do in our prayers of confession is to make them personal
i. Confession to God is not just a general statement
1. “God, I’m sorry for all my sins”
2. Notice Isaiah said, “I am a man of unclean lips and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips”
3. Confession is a statement of our own specific acts of transgression
ii. As we begin in prayer to review our actions in the past days or hours, the Holy Spirit will remind us of particular failures
iii. And when this happens we can pray, “Lord, I failed by doing this…” or “Lord I ask forgiveness for that…”
iv. Illustration: “The X-Ray Eyes of the Holy Spirit” This is not like I am reading off a checklist, but a rigorous and honest self-evaluation. In doing this, the X-Ray eyes of the Holy Spirit are penetrating the depths of my being and revealing any sin and corruption within me.
e. This type of confession is wonderful for our spirit because it allows us to be released from sin rather than to have to carry it around with us
i. Once we have given our sin to God, it should no longer be with us
1. We have seen a ‘definite’ time in our day where our heart was darkened by sin
2. Through confession we now see a ‘definite’ act of forgiveness from God because He promises to forgive us if we confess our sins to Him
ii. Quote: Confession is not a constant brooding or wallowing in sin, it is an immediate act of release where we move out of these sins and into an area where we feel loved, understood and forgiven by God.
iii. The Bible tells us to ‘forget that which is behind and move forward to that which is ahead’ (Philippians 3:13,14)
iv. Confession allows us to do that
f. Probably the most moving prayer of confession ever prayed was read by our opening reader this morning
i. Psalm 51 is David’s prayer of confession and repentance after having sinned against God with Bathsheba
ii. He had coveted, committed adultery and even committed murder
iii. David, a man who God had chosen from a young boy, had sinned horribly
iv. And these words are his confession to God
v. Psalm 51: 1,10-12 “Have mercy upon me, O God, According to Your lovingkindness; According to the multitude of Your tender mercies, Blot out my transgressions… Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from Your presence, And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, And uphold me by Your generous Spirit.”
g. It would do us all good to go to God with that type of contrition in our heart over our sins
TRANSITIONAL STATEMENT:
If ‘A’ reminds us to adore God and ‘C’ reminds us to confess our sins to Him,
then let ‘T’ remind us to thank Him for His blessings
II. Thanksgiving
a. Ingratitude is one of our most serious shortcomings as Christians, and another thing in our life that keeps us at a distance from God
i. He pours out His blessing upon us
ii. But too often we are so concerned with what we want, we fail to say “Thank you” for what He has already given us
b. Look at Jesus’ public prayers in the Scripture, they all include thanksgiving
i. Before He fed the Five Thousand, He looked to Heaven and gave thanks for the bread
ii. Before raising Lazarus from the dead Jesus said, “Father I thank thee that thou hast heard me” (John 11:41,42)
c. Just like in our confession of sin, our thanksgiving should be specific
i. Quote: “To be thankful for everything may lead us to be thankful for nothing”
ii. Hymn: Remember the old song, “Count your many blessings, name them one by one, and it will surprise what the Lord hath done”
iii. We should thank God specifically for:
1. Our life and creation
2. The privilege of being adopted as His children
3. God’s revelation of Himself through His Word and His Son
4. Housing, clothes, food
5. The privilege of living in a free country
6. God’s leadership in our lives
7. His discipline and comfort in times of trials
8. And of course the glorious hope of everlasting life in Heaven
iv. There is so much to give thanks for, we could spend all of our prayer time simply engrossed in the blessings God has given each of us
d. Always remember too, that there is never a time when thanksgiving is out of place
i. Paul tells us, “in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” (I Thessalonians 5:18)
ii. Illustration #1 “Thank God I have a head” A pastor asked a lady, “How are you today?” She said, “Well, I have a horrible headache, but, bless the Lord, I still have a head to ache!”
iii. Illustration #2 “I’ll still eat it” A father and his son were seated at the dining room table, while the mother was finishing the final preparations on the family’s dinner. While the father and son were seated, the father asked the son if he would say the prayer for the meal. The youngster nodded his head, and said that he would pray. The mother placed the last of the meal on the table, and sat down. The boy looked around the table at the food for a moment, and began to pray. He said, "God, I’m not sure what it is. But thanks anyway. And I’ll still eat it."
e. Quote: “Our spirit of thanksgiving ought to carry into our words, thoughts and actions throughout the day
i. we should live in a spirit of gratitude and thanksgiving.”
ii. And every prayer we pray should contain an expression of thanksgiving
CONCLUSION: You see, as much as Affirmation and Adoration allow us to enter God’s presence, Confession and Thanksgiving allow us to draw closer to Him.
These prayers of confession and thanksgiving don’t have to be well designed theological masterpieces – just you and God coming together as a father would with his son and sharing your feelings with Him
Illustration: “Just Talk to Jesus” Max Lucado has shared the story of a dying man who knew the vitality of prayer. A few days before his death, a minister visited with him in the hospital. Next to the man’s bed was an empty chair so the minister asked if somebody had recently been by to visit. The old man smiled and gave this answer, “I place Jesus on that chair and I talk to him.” He went on to explain, “Years ago a friend told me that prayer was as simple as talking to a good friend. So every day I pull up a chair, invite Jesus to sit, and we have a good talk.” Several days later the man died. His daughter had been sitting with him but slipped out for a few hours because he seemed to be resting so peacefully. When she returned to the room, she found him dead. Strangely, though, his head was not resting on the pillow, but on an empty chair beside his bed. When she related this unusual scene to the minister he not only understood its meaning, but also gained a greater understanding of prayer.
This touches my heart, because as a child I used to sit at my father’s feet and rest my head on his lap – it was one of the closest times I remember with my dad growing up
Oh, that we would all have that closeness with God – to be able to lay our head in his lap and just open our hearts to him –
Tell Him we are sorry for the things that disappoint Him
And we are thankful that He still loves us
(Let us pray)
