A Reason to Pray
By Pastor Matt Black
29
April 2007
Lord's Day morning
Ephesians 3:13-14
Introduction: Open your Bibles to the book of Ephesians. We are looking into this amazing letter that Paul wrote to the Ephesians Christians from prison. We will be reading verses 13 and 14 in Ephesians chapter 3. The whole first part of this chapter is leading up to a prayer for the Ephesians. Paul was in prison and knew he could meet his Lord. He wanted these believers to continue. Paul had a Reason to Pray, and so the title of this morning’s message is “A Reason to Pray.” Let’s read in this exciting and encouraging text this morning!
Ephesians 3:13-14, “Wherefore I desire that ye faint not at my tribulations for you, which is your glory. 14 For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,.”
These two verses unlock the Christian life for us. What I’m going to share with you is not simply knowledge. Many of you have so much knowledge of the Bible and of God. We don’t need more knowledge. What we need is the power to live what we already know about the Christian life! Where can you and I get the motivating passion to move us on to radical obedience to God? The only answer is fervent, passionate, prevailing prayer. This is not the praying of a list, but a meeting with the eternal God.
The apostles and the greatest Christians of history met with God! They didn’t need Seminary. They turned the world upside down, and in fact the early Christians living in the first century didn’t even have a New Testament. If you are saved, you lack absolutely nothing to live the Christian life. You have more available to you than any first century Christian ever had. You don’t need another class. Think of the Reformation. Martin Luther broke the shackles of a thousand years of darkness not because he had a course in theology or evangelism, but because he met with the Living God in the Word and in prevailing prayer! Nothing but that same touch from God can motivate us! We need a real meeting with God today.
We are so far removed from real, vital Christianity that we think we are Christians because we read the Bible or we go to church. Someone once famously said, “Going to church doesn’t make you a Christian any more than going to McDonalds makes you a hamburger” (Keith Green). We do God no service simply by attending church or reading our Bible. We go to church and read our Bibles in order to follow Christ. If your Bible reading and church going do not end with an encounter with the living God and a life of radical obedience to the risen Christ, you are no more a Christian than a Roman Catholic or a cultist who does the same.
You will not have the demonstration of power and of the Spirit on your life if you do not live a life of prevailing prayer. Now let me say I know what you are thinking.
Many of you do not think a life of prevailing prayer is possible. You think perhaps it could be possible for
v a preacher
v or a missionary,
v or maybe someone who is terribly sick in the hospital with hours alone every day.
But you say, “It cannot be possible for an overworked and underpaid mother of small children, or a busy father with a young family and a demanding job, and other time consuming responsibilities.” I want you to know that these verses of Scripture were intended precisely someone just like that, someone like you. These verses were written to the Ephesians, many of whom had amazing responsibilities. Some were slaves—servants with a family to support. They had just as little time as you have. Friends, we don’t need more time: we need a more radical commitment!
Let’s read these verses again: Ephesians 3:13-14, “Wherefore I desire that ye faint not at my tribulations for you, which is your glory. 14 For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,.”
Paul bowed his knees unto the Father that these immature believers could know the power of prevailing prayer.
A Warning
Now, I do want to give you the truth from God’s Word that will bring amazing and heavenly power in your life, and will result in a radical obedience to God, but I must give you a warning first. If you listen to this message, you will be held accountable to obey it. It would be better for you to get up and walk out right now if you have no intention to obey this Word from the Lord today.
We cannot pray one hour!
Before I tell you what those driving forces of prayer are, I want you to take a journey with me. Let us take a journey deep into the Garden of Gethsemane with the Lord and with His disciples. He says to His disciples, “What, could ye not watch with me one hour?” (Matthew 26:40). The disciples were sleeping. They were sleeping because they were not motivated to pray. Do you feel overwhelmed by life today? Do you feel asleep in your Christian life?
This morning God’s professing church is asleep. You personally may be spiritually sleeping. You are more aware of the circumstances of your life than the God who reigns far, far above any problem you may have, no matter how impossible the problem is. The Lord is calling us all this morning to wake up, to rise above the burdens of this life, and to give ourselves to the task of prayer. We cannot even pray one hour! The Lord implies that this is a very small amount of time to pray, and that is true. An hour is nothing if you know what prayer is. If prayer is simply reciting lists or rote prayers to God, then an hour is excruciating. But if prayer is simply meeting with the Living God, then time stands still. Two or three hours can go by and not be enough! What would this church look like this morning if we had a reason—a motivation to pray. I want to give you that reason.
A Reason to Pray: for the people Jesus died for to be Holy as He is Holy
Jesus died for a people. The Moravians used to say, “May the Lamb that was slain received the reward for His suffering”. My dear brothers and sisters, the Son of God paid for a people from this earth. He’s taking them out of this world one by one for Himself. He didn’t redeem them to save them from hell. He’s making them holy so that they will be fit to worship Him. I want that for you. God saved you to be a holy worshipper of Himself. I want more than anything to be united to a people that really know the Lord, that really pray, that are spiritually at war with the devil and this world! Do you want that kind of spiritual growth and maturity? What would this church look like if the Spirit of God poured into our lives and took control of each of us completely? That can be the case today, but this growth must take place through prayer. That was Paul’s DESIRE. Look at verse 13, “Wherefore I desire that ye faint not at my tribulations for you, which is your glory”. He says in verse 14—this is why he bows his knees unto the Father. He goes onto pray that the people he was influencing might know the exceeding greatness of God’s power in their lives, with God working His purposes in and through their lives. That’s what I desire for you!!
I. This morning, we need a holy Ambition. We need to pray with a holy all consuming DESIRE! Paul had a desire that consumed him. He said, “I desire” something for you! The word “desire” means to beg or crave—to want something more than life! Paul said, “I desire that ye faint not at my tribulations for you”. He says my desire is that you would be strong, spiritually mature!! Don’t faint, don’t lose heart!
A. Notice what His ambition was not.
His ambition was not a good job, success in this world, the all American (or the Jewish of all Jewish) families. Paul said, I was of “the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews”. But he said, I “do count them but dung, that I may win Christ” (Philippians 3:5, 8).
Notice Paul did not want to get out of his circumstances. His desire was totally others-focused. Paul was not self-focused. Nowhere do you find in the Bible Paul praying for his release from his circumstances. Paul lived above his circumstances so that he could strengthen others in Christ. He didn’t care about building businesses or houses or even church buildings! Paul cared about people.
B. But look here at what His ambition was.
Specifically, Paul desired that these people would not be cowards. Look at verse 13, “Wherefore I desire that ye faint not at my tribulations for you, which is your glory”. Paul’s whole desire was that these Ephesian believers would “faint not”. The word of “faint” means “to become cowardly under pressure or to lose heart”. You cannot live the Christian life without heart and courage. If you can go on day after day in a prayerless, unaffected way, then you should examine your Christianity. Is it the real thing? Paul’s knew that on the Last Day, all of his work for Christ would be inspected.
Application 1: We need to understand that our life every moment of every day is having an influence on people. Husbands will have the greatest accounting to give when the Lord comes again. We have such influence, authority, and power—especially in our homes. Husband, your wife is a reflection of you. Is your wife living a robust and spiritually mature Christian life? What is your ambition in life? What is your reason for living? Is it that the power of Christ and the demonstration of the Spirit might be reflected in your wife, in your children? Is your ambition that the power of Almighty God might be seen in your work place and in your church? Paul said, “I have one desire—one ambition—that those who name the name of Christ would not be cowards! That they would not be controlled by tribulations, but would show the glory of God in their lives and the power of the Spirit and rise above them”!
Illustration: Paul was not content with learning about God, he was concerned with living out the power of God in his life. It does you no good to memorize the Illinois driver’s manual if you do not intend to keep the laws that are explained in it. Each time the officer pulls you over, you tell him how well you know have the manual memorized, but you have no intention of obeying it. The purpose of knowing the driving laws is to live them out on the road. It does you no good to know Jesus Christ if you do not intend to meet with Him and to surrender and submit to His Lordship.
Or imagine you were convicted of robbing someone. It does you no good to ask a pardon from the judge while you still have the weapon in your hand. It does you no good to know the law unless you obey it. We ask for pardon so often from God with no intention of stopping our sinning. Listen, my ambition for you is that you would be strong. That you would “faint not” at the price it is going to cost you if you live for Christ. All our suffering for Him is glory!!
So often we think we come to church to learn about God. We listen so that we might live this Word out of our lives. We cannot cross our arms and think we’ve done God any service by simply hearing the Word. We want God to meet with us. I don’t want myself and my family simply to know the Word of God, I want us to live it, even if it kills us! My ambition, my burning desire is to live out the Word of God! Let that ambition drive you to prayer! Let it saturate and soak in your prayers. If you want that, you will find yourself praying longer and harder, because you cannot live the Christian life apart from the power of God, which only comes through prayer!!
And that brings us to our next point. Not only should we pray with ambition, but…
II. We must pray with Abandonment. Look again at verse 13, “Wherefore I desire that ye faint not at my tribulations for you, which is your glory”.
A. Context. Paul was suffering many tribulations. Paul wanted to live out the Word of God, and it cost him everything! This intimidated the Ephesian believers. He thought they might be cowards when they saw the cost that Paul was paying. But he says, don’t lose heart—don’t faint at the great cost it is to live the Christian life, you should glory in the trials and rise above the circumstances of your life!
Paul was not giving a philosophical lecture—he was paying the ultimate price for what he believed. Paul knew that the purposes of God could not be stopped no matter what they did to him.
Paul was under house arrest for two years (AD 60-62) in a Roman prison. Can I remind you that Paul was not depressed? Do you know that Paul was anything but faint of heart?! These trials were anything but an interruption in his life and ministry. We learn in Acts 28:23 that while Paul was in prison he “expounded and testified the kingdom of God, persuading them concerning Jesus, both out of the law of Moses, and out of the prophets, from morning till evening.”
Listen to Paul’s testimony during this time in Philippians 1:12-14, “the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel; 13 So that my bonds in Christ are manifest in all the palace, and in all other places; 14 And many of the brethren in the Lord, waxing confident by my bonds, are much more bold to speak the word without fear”.
B. Application. Paul was a man who abandoned himself to continual prayer for those around him. I’m telling you that prayer is your most basic duty as a Christian. We as God’s people need to open our eyes! People all around you are fainting! Is your family bold and robust in their spiritual walk? Pray for them! Are they fainting in the tribulations of life? Are you faint of heart? Pray!! Pray with abandon!
C. Illustration: Instead of praying when trials come, we turn on the television. We turn off the fire alarm and go back to sleep. Would you do something if your house was on fire? Would you continue on sleeping?
A person cannot sleep when they know the house is on fire. A genuine Christian prays—and at times prays for hours at a time. You say I’m so busy, I could never pray for an hour! A true Christian prays not only during slow times when he has time, but especially in the busiest of times! How is that? A Christian sees eternity! I say, a person cannot sleep when they know the house is on fire. A Christian cannot sleep when he knows there’s a hell! A Christian stands in the gap between heaven and hell--wide awake, confessing sin, praising God, and saving sinners from final judgment. A Christian may not be a theologian. Many Christians around the world may not even know how to read. But a genuine Christian whether they are an hour old or saved for many years knows how to pray and gives himself to prayer!
Your Christian life MUST be characterized by prayer, or it is not right for you to claim that you are a Christian!!
Charles Haddon Spurgeon said, “Live and die without prayer, and you will pray long enough when you get to hell.” He said, “You are no Christian if you do not pray. A prayerless soul is a Christless soul.”
Abandon your worldly pursuits and give your self to prayer!!
We live at a time when there are more people living on the earth than at any other time in the history of the world—when the greatest amount of prayer is needed, and the least amount of praying is being done. We ought to be praying for personal and world wide revival. We ought to be praying for God’s Spirit to be poured out upon men so that they would come to knowledge of the greatness of their sins and the greatness of the Saviour. But we cannot pray. We cannot pray! This morning I want to tell you that God’s people must pray!!!! Let us abandon all and give ourselves to prayer!
You say, how can I live this way, with abandonment? Well, that brings us to our last point.
III. You must live and pray with Awareness. Look at verse 14, “For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” A Christian is a Christian because he is aware of God. He is aware of eternity. Your awareness of God is what made you call on the Name of the Lord to be saved.
A. Are you aware of God? It will change you! It will drive you to prayer!
v Paul began to pray when Jesus appeared to Him on the road to Damascus.
v Isaiah began to pray when He had a vision of Jesus’ glory!
v Moses began to pray when He met with God at the burning bush.
These men were changed forever because they had an encounter with the Living God. They no longer lived for earthly pursuits. They were aware of eternity!
A Christian is aware of eternity. He lives not for the here and now on this earth but for our eternal future with God.
Listen, if you are aware of God, His heart will be your heart. God’s heart is to make people holy!
B. Are you so aware of God that He is working His CAUSE through you? You see a Christian prays, Matthew 6:10, “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.” A Christian is a vessel for God’s cause to be accomplished on this earth.
Paul said, “For this cause”… What cause? He goes on to pray for the rest of this chapter that the spiritual maturity of the Ephesians would bring glory to God for all ages to come. Paul was aware that Christ died to make a people holy for Himself to worship and glorify Him.
God wants to make you holy and then he wants to use you to make others holy! That’s why Christ died for you! The only thing that will bring this holiness into your life is an all consuming awareness of God. This awareness is what turned the world upside down in the first century. This awareness will cause you to give yourself to a life consumed with prayer! What kind of relationship could you have with someone if you never spoke to them? Do you know the Lord? If you know the Lord, you will be loving the Lord and praying before Him.
We live at an amazing and unusual time in world history. The time of the Lord’s return—the end of things as we know them—is drawing near, and God is calling on us all to pray for revival before He comes again. All revival is, is to live life with a consuming awareness of God. We could be in the very last century of human history. And revival in the last century will come just as it did in the first. It will come by Spirit filled Christians who live life on their knees!!
Conclusion: A true Christian life cannot be lived unless a person is looking into the very brink of eternity. Christians live with eternity always before their eyes, and it drives them to pray. We see the glories of heaven and feel the horrors of hell. He see eternity and he walks with the God of eternity. If you know nothing of prayer, you know nothing of Christ!
Paul had one desire. He bowed his knees to the Father that the Father might have worshippers. This morning I want all of you who profess to be saved to live it. I want to see holiness in your lives.
We all profess to know Christ, but what are we living for? A better car? Our next vacation? We need to be people of prayer who live on the edge of eternity. My prayer is that as God’s people we will open our eyes! Almost all of people that you see today are on the very brink of a miserable eternity. Some of you, as I look into your eyes this morning, are one breath away from hell.
Illustration: Just about two months ago Wayne Lehman gave Jill and I and our families a tour of an Amish woodworking shop in Shipshewana, Indiana. There in the shop we met many of the Amish who were making chairs and tables and all sorts of wooden furniture. This past Wednesday as you were getting ready for your day, Wayne was transporting five of those Amish men that we met to that woodworking shop. The Amish do not drive, and so Wayne would bring them into work. Those five men never made it to work that day. A semi-truck plowed into them at 6:45am, and all five men died instantly. Wayne made it through but is still recovering. We, like those Amish men are all one footstep away from eternity.
I know it is hard to set aside time to pray, but you and I are no busier than the first century Christians who turned the world upside down. You probably will open a loaf of bread today. They had to make it by hand. You might have turned on your sink and found running water. They had to get it from a well. We have much more time. You have the time, but do you have a real reason to pray? Are you ambitious for holiness in your life and in others life? Are you abandoning the things of this world? Are you aware of God?!
“Only one life, ‘twill soon be past, only what’s done for Christ will last”. Are rescuing people from hell? Are you influencing people for holiness? That comes out of a real, vital prayer life!!
Closing Hymn: 410 ‘Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus