Sermons
A Lesson About Prayer
Sun, Apr 15, 2018
Teacher: Tom Blackford Series: Sunday Sermons PM - 2018 Scripture: Mark 11:22-27
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A Lesson About Prayer
Mark 11:22-27
INTRO:
Good evening. In a discussion on prayer a preacher told this story about a friend of his and his son. A friend of mine took his small son with him to town one day to run some errands. When lunch time arrived, the two of them went to a familiar diner for a sandwich. The father sat down on one of the stools at the counter and lifted the boy up to the one beside him. They ordered lunch, and when the waiter brought the food, the father said, "Son, we'll just have a silent prayer." Dad got through praying first and waited for the boy to finish his prayer, but he just sat with his head bowed for an unusually long time. When he finally looked up, his father asked him, "What in the world were you praying about all that time?" With the innocence and honesty of a child, he replied, "How do I know? It was a silent prayer." I wonder if at times our prayer is just as silent. We have had a number of lessons on prayer and we will have more I am confident because this is such an important part of being a Christian.
Today our text is from the book of Mark. We will be reading Mark 11:22-27 – “22. So Jesus answered and said to them, "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 come to pass, 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. 25. "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.'' 27. Then they came again to Jerusalem. And as He was walking in the temple, the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders came to Him.”
It almost seems as you read the context, that these verses are somewhat out of place. But from the withering of the fig tree to that which Jesus would say to Peter, who seemed to be very surprised at the complete withering of the fig tree, Jesus speaks of faith: “have faith in God”. I am reminded of the passage in which Jesus says, “For with God all things are possible” (Mark 10:27).
From that expression of faith, have faith in God, Jesus proceeds to speak to the necessity of having faith in praying. A bit disjointed? Perhaps. At least it might seem so to you and me, but that does not minimize in the least the lesson He teaches about prayer. Mark’s relating of these things is obviously very brief. Indeed Mark moves quickly from point to point in his gospel
As I mentioned before there are gems of truth in the gospel of Mark which help us to see things more clearly than we see them in other gospels, but it is obvious that he is not intending here to go into a long dissertation on the subject of prayer.
Most assuredly, the New Testament has a great deal to say about prayer and praying ... not the least of which is our praying in keeping with God’s will as we see in 1 John 5:14 – “Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.”.
What I would like to do this evening is look at this very brief text and suggest two or three things that are here about the subject of prayer.
I. FIRST JESUS BEGINS WITH THE NECESSITY OF FAITH IN PRAYING
A. First Mark 11:22 says - “Have faith in God”
1. It seems to me that without believing in God, without faith in God, praying is just pointless. Yet, I imagine we have experienced people, whom we have never heard expressing faith or even acting like they believe there is a God, but suddenly, in times of distress, we find them praying.
2. Remembering in Hebrews 11:6 – “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” We wonder - if one does not believe in God, why pray? Scripture says without faith you can’t please God. Without faith then it is just pointless to pray.
3. I want also to ask you, in your Bibles, to look at Matthew’s gospel, chapter 6 at verses 12 and 13. Here is what our Lord says: Matthew 6:12-13 – “12. And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors. 13. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. for Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.” We’re going to come back to this in just a little while and think about prayer in terms of “do we want to be forgiven by God in the same way we forgive others”.
4. Still in Matthew, turn to chapter 7 and verse 11. Here I want you to notice the kind of God in whom I believe, and ask you if you share my belief. Matthew 7:11 – “"If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!” - Do we really believe in that God? Do we really believe in that loving Father?
5. There is necessity for faith in praying. I believe, and admit, that it might at times be difficult to pray to God which we do not see.
6. I remember over in the book of I Samuel chapter 1 the incident of Hanna and her praying, Eli the priest saw her pray, her lips are moving but her voice was not heard, and there is no one there—(whispered) except God. Did she see God? No. The perception Eli had that she was inebriated may have come from the fact that we pray to a God that we cannot see.
7. When you see religious shrines and buildings have you ever wondered if that is why these idols/symbols adorn so many religious edifices. The idol/object/statue gives the person some direction in which to speak, some direction in which to pray, and it is a representation of deity whom this person cannot see. That doesn’t make it right. I’m just saying, that I wonder, knowing that it is difficult at times to pray to someone whom we cannot see.
B. God can sometimes seem so distant from us, but in the next verse in Mark’s gospel, chapter 11, verse 23 Jesus says: “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.” Here’s the second thing about faith in praying and that is—faith has confidence. Here is this wonderful passage describing, saying to this mountain be cast into the sea and if you believe, if you have faith, if you have confidence, what you ask will be done.
1. This expression concerning the removing of the mountain is often said to be, by those who write concerning this passage, a proverbial expression which was significant to that time and place and culture. Perhaps that’s true.
2. I notice in I Corinthians chapter 12, verse 2 that the apostle Paul uses a similar expression. Here’s what he says: “Though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.” There it is: So that I could remove mountains by faith.
3. Whether or not the expression is proverbial, the point of the expression is to emphasize the great power of praying in faith. Perhaps it’s for illustration. Perhaps it’s a proverb. That is immaterial.
4. It is used for the purpose of helping people to understand that if we have enough faith there is great power in our prayer. Our problem, of course, is so very often the absence of that faith. We pray in fear. We pray feebly. We might even pray silently as that little boy did. Jesus teaches us to pray with power.
C. You can only pray with power if you pray with great confidence that prayer can change things. Notice in the middle of this verse: “shall not doubt in his heart”. Quite a telling expression.
1. Ever hear this? “I’m not sure it will do any good, but I’ll pray anyway”. Maybe I’ve never heard anyone say those exact words, but I’ve heard them express themselves in such a way that it seems that is what they believe. I’m not sure it’s going to do any good, but I’ll pray.
2. You know, for so many folks prayer just seems to be an afterthought. It seems to be the last ditch effort.
3. Folks, prayer needs to be the atmosphere of our lives not just the emergency cord.
4. In Ephesians 6:18 Paul writes: “praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints ” - “praying always...with all perseverance...” Jesus spoke a parable in Luke 18:1 – “that men always ought to pray and not lose heart,” Perhaps your translation says: not to give up. We don’t give up in praying if we have the kind of confidence in prayer that we should have.
II. The second lesson here concerns THE EXPECTATION OF PRAYER
A. The expectation of prayer is certainly related to faith in praying isn’t it?
1. If we don’t have faith then there really isn’t much to expect.
2. Think about this: What do you expect when you pray? What is it we actually expect in our heart?
3. I have an idea that many of us would like to have a clear and well defined answer to our prayers. We’d like in some ways for God to identify: Here’s my answer.
4. Knowing me, you may not believe this but I like art. I really enjoy art. Once in a while I enjoy going to a museum of fine art and looking at sculptures, looking at fine paintings. One of the great joys of my life was a visit to the Smithsonian in which there is a section of famous art works. The National Art Gallery. There is a vast difference between seeing the real sculpture or painting and seeing a photograph.
5. To stand in front of these famous works and see them in person was such a great pleasure, but I noticed that often down in one corner or the other is the artist’s name. The artist is saying “I did this”.
6. Folks, God does not in any way hang a sign saying, “Look what I did” on the answers to prayers. I know we would like to have that. We’d like to be able to say, “There it is. There’s the answer.”
B. Still, having said that, if we have faith we will expect God to answer our prayers.
1. In verse 24 of Mark 11 – “"Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.” Believe that you will receive them. There is the expectation.
2. In 1 John 5:14 – “Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.” The confidence we have in prayer is that He will answer our prayers, that He will hear them, and that he will answer them.
3. We may have a bit of a problem understanding the answer, or seeing the answer, but the confidence that we should hav—is that God will answer our prayers in keeping with His will. There is that qualifier - “according to his will”
C. In the book of James in chapter one, verse six, after speaking of wisdom or perhaps the absence of it, James advises that you ask in prayer. James 1:6 – “But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind.” Your translation may use “wavering”. “But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering...”.
1. James says: with no doubting. That is the expectation. It’s true, I understand that our expectations are often not realized in substance because we can’t identify it, but that’s not necessary. The answer to our prayers is up to the Father - that’s His business
2. It is my business, to pray successfully and it is my business to confidently believe that God will answer.
3. Maybe the answering part of this is difficult because if we don’t get the answer exactly as we prayed then we have a tendency to say God didn’t answer my prayer. Folks, whether or not we can recognize the answer, God does answer the prayers of faithful people in keeping with His will.
III. THE FORGIVING SPIRIT IN PRAYER - The third part in this section of lessons concerning prayer has to do with a forgiving spirit when praying.
A. Think about this...
1. If our relationships to one another are in a mess... so too is our relationship with God. Let me say that again because I believe it’s true, and I believe that I can prove it with scripture. If our relationships with one another are in a mess then so too is our relationship with God.
2. In your Bibles look at First John chapter four, verse 20. You’ll recognize the verse. 1 John 4:20 – “If someone says, "I love God,'' and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?”
3. Think about that verse and what I just said. If our relationships with one another are in a mess then so too is our relationship with God. John, the apostle of love, recognized that fact by the inspiration of the Spirit of God who wrote to us about this business: if we don’t love one another how can we love God.
B. We go back to our passage in Mark and we read verses 25 and 26. Mark 11:25,26 – “25. "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.''” - Do we see the imperative there...”forgive”.
1. Folks, listen, if we pray to God with an unforgiving spirit in ourselves, that unforgiving spirit is going to hold God’s forgiveness from us. I know that you can read commentaries and articles on this passage and find that many people who write, (particularly those with Calvinistic beliefs), just cannot see that this is possible, but the language is fairly difficult to misunderstand if you can read. This passage says that if you pray asking God’s forgiveness while you have an unforgiving spirit toward others God’s not going to forgive you. That’s serious business.
2. Let me say it this way; the prayer of a bitter person cannot penetrate the wall of their own bitterness. Why is that? The principle of God is love, for He is love. If the ruling principle of a person's heart is bitterness, they have erected a barrier between themselves and God. For the prayer of such a person to be answered they must first ask God to cleanse their heart from the bitter spirit and put into it the spirit of love. Then they have common spirit with God, they can speak to God and God can speak to them.
3. I have a strong suspicion that many people have a tendency not to take care about their human relationships and neglect getting them in order. While they are praying to God: forgive me I have sinned, their hearts are full of an unforgiving spirit.
C. Let us think for a bit about forgiveness...
1. In Matthew’s gospel in chapter five at verses 23 and 24 are a couple of verse that have so much to say about how our relationships with one another affect our relationship with God. Listen to what is said: Matthew 5:23,24 – “23. "Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24. "leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.” - does this not give a strong signal about how human relationships impact our relationship with God?
2. If we can’t get our relationships with one another straight, if we can’t keep them in good order then there’s no way to believe that we can keep our relationship with God in order.
3. I want to come back to the passage which I read a while ago over in the sixth chapter of Matthew’s gospel at verse 12: Matthew 6:12 – “And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors.” That word we translate as debts carries with it the idea of “that which is owed”. Look at the words, "as we forgive our debtors", what are we asking here? “God I want you to forgive me in exactly the same way that I forgive people who sin against me.” Is that what we really want? Do we want Him to forgive in the same way we forgive?
4. Then let’s look in the 18th chapter of Matthew’s gospel, at the conclusion of a very lengthy section of scripture that is concerned with forgiving one another.
5. Remember Peter said: How often can I forgive my brother, and the Lord said until seventy times seven. Peter thought he was being magnanimous when he said until seven times Lord. Jesus goes far beyond that. Next there’s this kingdom parable describing the nature of forgiveness.
6. I want to read just a part of this at the last verse of the chapter: Matthew 18:35 – “So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses.”
7. “...from your hearts forgive...” - If you from your hearts do not forgive, what happens? In Verse 34, And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him. Folks, listen, God is not happy if we do not from our hearts forgive one another. Is there someone you know you need to forgive?
8. Are we praying with bitterness in our hearts and do we think that the time we take to pray is beneficial to us? This section of Mark’s gospel dealing with the subject of prayer doesn’t cover all the facets of prayer, and perhaps in its brevity and simplicity the lessons are more easily remembered.
CONCLUSION:
Prayer is one of the great keys to a longer spiritual life. These brief words of our Lord will help us in grow stronger in our Christian walk. Don’t we love those words—faith in God?
We’re going to sing the invitation song now which was announced a while ago.
We always sing with a hope in our hearts and a prayer, lifting up to God a prayer that we may be of help to someone in the assembly needing to respond, deciding to respond for whatever reason.
I wonder if there may be a brother or sister here today needing the forgiveness of God because of bitterness in their hearts and needing the helpfulness of prayers of brothers and sisters in Jesus. If so I invite them to come forward and let us know that is their need and we will be glad to pray with you.
Are you in this assembly, needing to be baptized into Christ? Don’t let the need wait. Do you have faith in God? Of course you do. The next step is repentance. Are you willing to repent? To change the whole course of your life through a change of your mind toward God? If you are then being baptized should be no problem.
The big question is this: Are you ready to obey? If you are, come and let us hear your confession of faith in Christ and watch as you’re baptized into Him tonight.
If we can help in any way through prayer or whatever other means come and let us know while we stand and while we sing.
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Reference sermon, Cecil A. Hutson, 18 May 2008
Where and when we meet
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