Sermon
Prayers That Reach The Heart Of God
March 6-7, 1999
Pastor Donald Sheley

It's a delight to have you with us today. For a number of weeks we've been going through the Sermon on the Mount, and if we were to take our text today it would be in Matthew 6:5-8. The subject is prayer. That's what's going to be the theme of our seminar, Praying For You. What I would like to do is take my thought concerning these verses and I'll attach them to the remaining words because in that same passage Jesus says it's in this manner, therefore, pray; and then He gives us the Lord's Prayer in the Matthew passage. So we're going to talk about that the next time we gather, but I'd like to take a passage out of Paul's writings as he discusses the subject of prayer with Timothy, the young preacher.

There are eight verses that we're just going to concentrate on for our thoughts today as Paul talks about prayer. And we're going to learn that in these eight verses he says five specific things about prayer. Let me read them for you. Again, it's 1 Timothy 2:1-8. Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. For this is good and acceptable in that sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time, for which I was appointed a preacher and an apostle - I am speaking the truth in Christ and not lying - a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth. I desire therefore that the men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting. 

Paul says Timothy, I want to talk to you about this matter or prayers and supplications and intercessions and the giving of thanks. And first of all prayer must be a priority. Write that as number one. Prayer is a priority. You see that phrase there, first of all? Not primarily in sequence, but above everything else. Timothy, prayer must be a priority. It must be the number one thing in your life. It's the highest experience that's affordable to mankind. Timothy, first of all prayer must be a priority in this matter of intercession, this matter of giving thanks, this matter of prayers. Not something we do when we've tried everything else. Not something we tag on to the end of an event or in the front of an event. Something that is the very heart of our being; a heart that is in communication with God almighty, a heart that is in worship with Him. That's prayer. 

First of all, the first thing in your life; the priority must be prayer. Now immediately as soon as I say that you say, well Pastor just a minute, I'm busy making a living, I work, it takes me two hours to commute and by the time I get home I'm dead tired. Pastor, I don't have much time for prayer yet we're told to pray without ceasing. What Paul is speaking of here is an attitude of the heart; always, always in communion with God first of all, the very priority of our life. 

You know when I think of that, I think of the nation of South Korea. That nation went through the awful agonies of the Korean War and that brought that nation to their knees and they began to be a praying nation. And today there are some unique and wonderful things about the churches in South Korea. It is a nation that says prayer is not only a priority in our personal lives, it's a priority in our church. It's the very thing of which we build all other things around. And when you go to Korea today it is a small church if it has less than 10,000 people in it, because it's a nation where people go to church. There are three things that mark them when they say prayer is our priority. 

Number one; almost every church in South Korea has a daily prayer meeting 365 days a year and it starts at 4:00 every morning. They have a prayer meeting at 5:00, another one at 6:00, and these prayer meetings jam those mammoth auditoriums with thousands and thousands and thousands of people at 4:00 in the morning. I've been there. It absolutely leaves you breathless. These folks come all gathered around on those cold winter nights with their clothes and yet they're raising their hands praising God and praying for their nation and for their world. It's a praying nation. Do you know that the largest church in the world is located there? And I think my statistics are correct. The main sanctuary seats15,000, I think it is, and then they have 11 stories of auditoriums that are fed by television feed on closed circuit television, and each of those seats 7,500 (something like that). But I know that when they all gather together 75,000 people can gather for one service, and they have 10 services on Sunday. Now you add that up folks. That's 750,000 people in church in one church. They're a praying church. 

Secondly, almost every church in South Korea meets on Friday night at 10:00 and they pray all night till sunrise on Saturday. All night prayer meetings, and they are attended by tens and tens and tens of thousands of people. One other thing, most of the churches have gone outside the city limits, purchased plots of ground on which they have built their prayer retreats. And they make just very, very small buildings, much like a prayer closets, and they line those pieces of real estate where hundreds and thousands of people can go any time of the day and the night and find a prayer closet and there they pray. The large church that I spoke of in Seoul Korea; they have purchased an entire mountain and literally thousands of people are there praying night and day. And they're not only praying for their nation, they're praying for world evangelism. 

Do you know that while they were praying God led them to start preparing missionaries and when the iron curtain dropped in 1989, they sent 40,000 equipped missionaries into Russia? And do you know they're training them by the hundreds of thousands and they're going to move into China when they have the opportunity to lead that nation to Christ? It's a nation where prayer is a priority in the life of the church and in the life of the individual. And they are changing their nation and changing the world. 

The second point that Paul makes to Timothy is the panorama. We've got the priority of prayer. Consider the panorama of prayer. Look at what it is. Prayers and intercessions must be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority. In other words, he is saying the horizon the panorama of things that we cover in our prayers; we should pray for all men everywhere. That's a world encompassing prayer life. Most of us get on our knees and say God I want you to bless the kids, I want you to bless the house, and help me down at the job, and help me to be prosperous, and we're about done in three minutes. I mean that's our panorama. That's about as big a horizon as we've got in our prayer life, and most of it is exceedingly selfish; just for ourselves. 

Now Paul said, listen, Timothy if you're going to pray first of all it's going to be a priority and your heart is going to be as big as the world because you're going to pray for men everywhere. How long has it been since you prayed for all the missionaries by name that you know? How long has it been since you prayed for the nations of the world that will not allow the gospel of Jesus Christ to be preached? Do you know that there are more martyrs, more people that have died for their faith, in this century than all other centuries put together; even under the Roman Empire? Did you know that? We're living in a day when people who preach the gospel in many nations, they give their lives for it. Do we pray for them? Do we pray that God would somehow open those nations?

Do we pray for those in authority as Paul said? No, we talk against them. I mean, we take our national leaders and we've stripped them naked with our criticisms the last few months. That's not Christian. Paul said you pray for them. You pray for those that are in authority, and so he says, Timothy, prayer becomes exciting when you leave your little domain and your little panorama of selfishness and you start venturing into a world that God wants to touch, and you become concerned with the world, and the leaders of the world, and nations of the world, and missionaries of the world. When you become concerned with your neighborhood and those who lead your city government and those who run the state government. Pray for all those that are in authority. So he talks about the panorama of prayer. 

Let's go to the third one. He talks about the purpose of prayer. Look at it. He says that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. You see one of the great quandaries of theology is this; why should we pray? If God is a sovereign God and He's going to do everything His way, does prayer really change God? And some theologians take the place, no, prayer is just simply falling in line with what God's doing and adjusting to it. Now on the other side of the coin, there are those who say God does nothing until we pray. 

Dr. Billheimer in his book entitled 'Destine For The Throne' takes the position that God will do nothing if Christian do not pray. Now the whole weight of the world and its needs falls on our shoulders. Somewhere between those two extremes is truth. I know that the Bible says that God is sovereign, but I also know He tells us to pray. So somewhere in the middle prayer fits into God's divine plan. So the question is this, does prayer change God? And my answer is no. Prayer changes us. 

You say Pastor, is that true in everything? I don't know. I'm still wrestling, but what I'm saying is I know one thing, Paul says when we pray it does something for us. First of all, it brings us to peace with ourselves and God. That's true. When we're on our knees and we're in communication with God we realize that that relationship is a relationship of peace and joy and it does something; it changes us. Now he said also prayer will make us very sensitive to godliness. I mean if we don't get near to God, we're not going to have a sensitivity to godliness or purity or holiness. It's when you gather in your prayer life into His very presence and He turns the searchlight of truth on your soul, and you begin to see yourself as He sees you. That only takes place in prayer. 

Paul said not only in prayer does it change my relationship with others and my relationship with God, one to be at peace, but it makes me sensitive to godliness. And then he says I will also have a respect, a reverence, for the sacred. I mean you spend time in God's presence and you can't help but become sensitive to what He's sensitive about. But if you're not in His presence, you won't. That's true folks. The closer you draw to God the more sensitivity you're going the have for the sacred; more reverence for the divine. So Paul says Timothy make prayer priority number one in your life and make your prayer life as big as the world, and as you do it will change you as a person. 

Fourthly, the priest of prayer. Look at verse 5 and 6. For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time. Paul says prayer is one of the most priceless privileges a human being can experience. Now if we lived before Calvary the most we could do in our coming to God would be to gather up our animal, our sacrifice, take it into the temple or the tabernacle and give it to the priest. He'd lay it on the altar. The animal would give his life and I would walk away, but there inside that tabernacle was a building and they tell me that there inside that building the very presence of God dwells. And that's where I want to go. I want to talk to God. But if I lived before Calvary all I could do was get to that altar, give my sacrifice, and know that only once a year does a priest walk in that place where God dwells. I'll never get there. And I have to leave the tabernacle or the temple courtyard. I did my thing, but I didn't have an audience with God. 

And the writer to the book of Hebrews tells us that when Jesus gave His life and the veil of His flesh was rent, when He uttered those words 'It is finished' that veil in the temple that had separated man from God for centuries was ripped from top to bottom. And what does that mean? No longer is there a barrier between man and God, and now I have the privilege to walk into the very courtroom, the throne room, of the eternal and talk to my Great High Priest. You see Jesus Christ is the Great High Priest who's passed into the heavens. He's walked this life. He knows the pain. He has felt life as we feel it and the writer of Hebrews says that He's touched with the things that touch us. He understands and thus in prayer you and I have that blessed intimate opportunity to have personal conversation with the Great High Priest. Now that's, that is a marvelous privilege. 

There are times in my office I just raise my hand and all I say is Jesus, and immediately I sense His presence. He's there and there are no barriers. The Mediator has given His life in ransom. He's paid the price. He forgives and He cleanses, and prayer is that appointment in the throne room of the eternal with our Great High Priest. Now when you see prayer like that, that changes the whole perspective of prayer doesn't it? It's a meeting time with Christ. Timothy, don't ever forget you've got one God and one Mediator. He's Christ Jesus and He's paid the ransom for all of us, and when you pray you walk into His presence. 

Last one; verse 8 is the position of prayer. Notice what he says in verse 8. He says, I desire therefore that men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath to God. Here's what he's saying, if you want to touch the heart of God there are three requirements. Look at what they are. First of all, he who prays must stretch forth holy hands. What he's saying is if I'm going to walk into the presence of holiness I can't live a life that's impure. In the Old Testament God says listen I won't hear you, I'll close my ears, I'll cover them, I will not hear your prayers because you've got blood stained hands. What He's simply saying is your life is impure, and with your impurities. God's hand is not shortened, that He cannot save; neither is His ear heavy, that He cannot hear. But your iniquities have separated between you and your God; and He will not hear you. Isaiah 59. 

What Paul is saying, look, Timothy, when you walk into His presence make sure that is has been the anticipation and the goal of your life to live as pure as you possibly can. Secondly, and don't come there with wrath. Don't come there with a heart filled with bitterness and unforgiveness. Have a heart that's fresh; a heart that's pure; a heart that's forgiving; a heart that's loving. Don't walk into His presence and have resentment against someone else and non- forgiveness to those who have hurt you. Don't walk into His presence like that. You walk in with the wrath in your heart and your prayer is like a bird without wings that goes nowhere. 

Look at number 3. He said when you walk into the presence in prayer he said make sure that there are no doubts. Don't doubt God's greatness. Don't doubt His power. Don't doubt His love. Don't doubt God. James says if anyone lacks wisdom let him ask of God who gives to all liberally and without reproach and it will be given to him, 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. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord. He's a double-minded man and he's unstable in all of his ways. Timothy, here's my advice on prayer. Make it the number one thing in your life, and make your prayer encompass the world. Don't be selfish. And as you pray, Timothy, you're going to have a changed life. You're going to have a changed character. You're going to have a sensitivity to godliness. And Timothy, don't forget, it's the greatest appointment any human being can enjoy; an appointment with the Great High Priest. But when you go there Timothy, make sure your life is right, your heart is pure, and your faith is simple; simply trusting Him. Now you've touched the heart of God. In the days to come, we're going to be thinking a lot of prayer. 

Next week as brother Tryon comes we're going to enjoy learning how to practically pray. You say, Pastor, the only reason why my panorama is only three or four minutes long is because that's me. What he's going to do is he's going to teach us how to broaden that panorama of prayer so we're all comfortable with it. My prayer is that in all that we do, prayer becomes the priority of our ministry. Tonight after the evening service all the elders are meeting together in preparation for our seminar. We're going to spend most of our time in prayer. The remaining moments we'll talk about the needs of the church, but we're going to make prayer the priority. And I'm asking the choir when they gather together for their hour of practice, spend thirty minutes of it in prayer then thirty minutes in practice. They'll sing a whole lot better when they pray for thirty minutes, right? And I'm going to ask all of the leaders in all of the ministries; let's not just tag a prayer up here in front and a tag at the end. Let's make prayer truly a priority in the ministries of this church. Amen? Amen.

Let's bow our heads together shall we. Lord Jesus, this has been a different morning. We've talked about a lot of things. We've talked about the sheep that are straying and we've talked about our prayer life that needs work. So as we leave the sanctuary today may these truths circulate in our mind and may Your precious Holy Spirit continue to minister to us. We want to grow in the grace and in the knowledge of You. That was our reason for being here. May that have been accomplished today. And now may Your divinest benediction rest upon us, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit we pray. And everybody said, amen. God bless you.