Have Jesus? Remember, He's not just God's son, but is also the Living Bread and the Vine and the Rock and the Lamb of God and The WORD. So maybe you only know Him as Saviour, or as the I WUZ or Used to Be?
If it weren't for the Scriptures,
we wouldn't even know what Prayer was !
God hears all children's prayers (INNOCENT children, that is, with the emphasis on innocent) no matter how ungodly or wicked their parents might be. Matthew 18:10, 19:14.
Suppose I were to carve out my own "God" and bow down to it: Would my prayers to that god be heard and answered? How about the god called Dagon whom the Philistines worshipped -- did he hear their prayers?? No, of course not.
The name of Buddha won't work, nor Haile Selassie, nor Krishna, nor Mohammed -- maybe they were reputable characters -- but they aren't the Holy Name above all names...
Their followers got the IDEA and principles of prayer from the Bible, the self-proclaimed Word of Truth, but then changed the meaning and the rules to suit their own purposes.
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They have the audacity to take His name in vain, use it as a curse, and then expect Him to hear them in their day of calamity ! Behaving like the Pharaoh in Egypt who begged Moses to take-away the plagues, but then, just as soon as the plague was removed, went back to living the sorry old bummer way that was the usual custom.
Consider the prayer of the great prophet ELIJAH on Mount Carmel. The story is found in 1st Kings 18 concerning the opposing prayers of the 450 prophets of Baal and the 400 prophets of the groves who wanted GOD to send down the fire on their sacrifice. These 850 persons were sincere to the point of doing bodily harm to themselves; drawing blood, etc., BUT THEY WERE SINCERELY WRONG!
Elijah PROVED to them who the real GOD was -- he said "how long halt ye between two opinions -- if the LORD be GOD then follow him, but if Baal be GOD, follow him". Elijah gave the false prophets plenty of time but the fire didn't come down until Elijah prayed to the real god. Later on, at Pentecost, the "New" fire came down also on the Twelve Apostles.
The Muslims have it right about God being great, and maybe also correct about one of His names being Allah because of the differences in spelling between Hebrew, Arabic, and Aramaic, but they know NOTHING about the true nature of God because they're following the false and perverted teaching of the Koran or Hadith. They've doomed their children by enticing them with fables about 70 virgins after a suicidal lifestyle and hateful martyrs death.
According to Scripture, we don't pray to Mary and we don't pray to some Saint, but only to God -- the Heavenly Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Matt6:6. That's who Jesus prayed to, and he is our example. God's Word, the Holy Scripture, is our Rule Book, and "whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning". Rom15:4
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"When you pray, ...pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which sees in secret shall reward thee openly." Mt6:6
It's important that you actually believe that God is your father, based upon your being born-again of the incorruptible Word and Son and Truth and Seed, etc. THE WORD IS GOD!
The first use of the word "Prayer" (Heb: tephillah) is found in 2Samuel 7:27. It was David's son Solomon who built the physical house of God (the Temple), and the House of David was the spiritual house given him by God, so David "prayed this prayer". By contrast Hebrews 3:6 explains how we (the believers) are the house of Christ. Not just salt and light, not just kings and priests, but "houses" or temples of the Holy Spirit.
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Suppose God told us to light a candle and make the sign of the cross every time we had a prayer for Him. Wouldn't we try to find a candle then? Well, the Scripture has prayer rules, but they don't say anything about lighting a candle or making the sign of the cross. So maybe we ought to go by His rules?
It’s like in today’s culture, we know about Passwords and that you can’t use someone else’s computer unless you know their password; neither will you be having results from praying “In the Name of Jesus” unless you’re authorized to use that name. To see it that way, just remember about the Passover and The Word, and how God has seen this day from the very Beginning. Without His Password, you’ll be spinning your wheels and going nowhere! Acts 15:18 “Known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world”.
Is Prayer available to Everybody?Can just anybody pray for just anyone else? Frankly, there are those whom I would just as soon they keep their "prayers" to themselves...
Who prays for who??
"..My servant Job shall pray for you: for him will I accept: lest I deal with you after your folly, in that ye have not spoken of me the thing which is right, like my servant Job.
So Eliphaz the Temanite and Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite went, and did according as the LORD commanded them: the LORD also accepted Job. And the LORD turned the captivity of Job, when he prayed for his friends: also the LORD gave Job twice as much as he had before". Job 42:8-10. Notice how the Old Testament specifically tells about Job (Abraham too), praying for others, rather than for the others to be praying for themselves -- opponents of Scripture like to say that people who pray are just talking to themselves, and it has a ring of truth because that's what's happening when those who deny and/or disobey the Son of God imagine their prayers are being heard!
The psalmist wrote: "What is man, that thou art mindful of him?" and the natural man with natural reasoning would surely conclude that no God or Supreme Being capable of creating such a universe would be likely to give the time of day to such an insignificant object as a single human being. He's told us!! So we'll know!!
We all accept the historical fact of Caesar and Napoleon and Alexander the Great, and even pseudo-religions acknowledge that Jesus really lived and said what the Bible says he said. Trouble is, they stupidly imagine that he was only a "good man", despite the fact and logical conclusion that the things it says he said were either true or were as unbelievable as the ravings of a lunatic.
The Apostle Paul writes: "I will therefore that men pray everywhere, lifting up HOLY HANDS, without wrath and doubting." 1Tim 2:8. So does this verse give carte blanche for any whosoever to pray just for anything or in any way that he chooses? I don't think so. For one, the hands must be holy, and not covered with innocent blood.
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"And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any; that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses." Mark 11:25
Forgiveness is a pre-requisite to prayer. If you just will not forgive then "neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses".
Maybe you're saying "But how can I forgive such a beastly crime" ? It's for your own good -- unforgiveness won't bother the one you're angry with, but it's likely to give you ulcers or some such, if you dwell on it. So forgive, forget, and get on with life.
"Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them". Ps119:165 - It's plain to see those who are easily offended don't know the "Prince of Peace".
"Ye ask, and receive not, because you ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts". James 4:3 There may come a time when you really desire to pray for the life or health of a loved one, and why wouldn't you want to pray an effective prayer? If we're just "winging it", chances are we'll mess up, but Romans 8:29 explains "We know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered". Praying in the Spirit will build up your faith, too! Jude 21.
The Koran denies the Son of God, asserting that God didn't have a wife, and thus couldn't have a son. Make sense?
To some it does, but not to those who've kept on reading all sixty-six books of the Bible. In Jeremiah 3:14 it seems that God DOES have a wife! Surprise, surprise! Genesis to Revelation is the God-breathed Word! "Thy maker is thine HUSBAND", Isa54:5, and "I have espoused you to one HUSBAND.." 2Cor11:2 Our "Heavenly Father" is also a "Heavenly Husband", in addition to "Consuming Fire", "Fountain of Living Water", "Potter", Spirit, WORD, etc.
Ephesians Chapt. 6 -- the Armor of God precedes Prayer!
The New Covenant spiritual battle is NOT against flesh and blood, but against wickedness and ignorance of the Truth -- those Old Testament saints went up against living Philistines and Midianites using metal swords that chopped off real heads, but now we use the Sword of the Spirit to cut off the head of the dragon--satanic works of the devil.
1. Loins girded with truth. It's a girdle that may feel uncomfortable at first.2. Breastplate of Righteousness. That's KNOWING you're following the rule book. Obeying His commandments.
3. Feet shod with preparation of the Gospel. Don't go barefoot -- He wants to give you New shoes!
4. Shield of Faith to ward off Satan's attack. It won't stop 'em from coming though...
5. Helmet of Salvation. Without this one, you might be going to battle completely naked....
6. Sword of the Spirit. This is a MUST if you're going to damage the enemy ! Don't leave home without it!
What happens after you've put on all this Armor of God?
Scripture says:"PRAYING always with all prayer [all kinds of prayer] and supplication IN THE SPIRIT, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints". Eph 6:18
The Bible speaks of different kinds of prayer and people just scrape them all together into the same bag and thinks it's OK -- but different circumstances call for different prayers. You don't pray "If it be thy will" when you know His will.
So what is His will ?? It's His Word !
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The Power of Attorney.
"God's on His Throne!" they tell you -- "He has it all under control..." -- but they've forgotten the parable of the Lord who went into a far country and left things in the hands of his servants. Having his feet on the footstool is figurative speaking for RESTING!. It's the "Word" in the mouths of His disciples who have the Power of Attorney to do the works of Jesus.
It’s like in today’s culture, we know about Passwords and that you can’t use someone else’s computer unless you know their password; neither will you be having results from praying “In the Name of Jesus” unless you’re authorized to use that name. To see it that way, just remember about the Passover and The Word, and how God has seen this day from the very Beginning. Without His Password, you’ll be spinning your wheels and going nowhere! Acts 15:18 “Known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world”.
Seems like nothing gets accomplished in the spiritual realm unless and until someone prays: -- that conditions and circumstances simply follow natural laws and devilish inclinations until prayer is made to the Father in the name of Jesus.
Those who merely parrot the name are just "taking His name in vain".
The "Prayer of Agreement"
Matthew 18:19,20
"I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven. For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them".
Why two? It goes back to the verse, Gen41:32, which tells us 'By two it's established' -- a prayer-partner is essential !
The "Prayer of Faith"
James 5:15
"And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him".
Faith is three-fold: it works by love, Gal 5:6; it comes by hearing the Bible, Rom10:17, and is the substance of things hoped for, Heb 11:6. Jesus himself is the Word of Faith, Rom10:8.
The "Prayer of Jabez"
1Chronicles 4:9,10
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.
They didn't have the name of Jesus in the Old Testament. They didn't know about The Lord's Prayer, the Prayer of Agreement, or the Prayer of Faith for healing, and only had a few clues concerning the coming of the Messiah -- they expected him to be born as a baby (Micah 5:2) but thought He would grow up to be a King and Conquerer to rescue them from the clutches of the Romans (Acts 1:6).
Instead, he came as a baby (like we all do) and as our EXAMPLE (1Pet2:21) of how to follow after the GOD of Love and Truth and Healing.
My testimony. I was overseas on an aircraft carrier when notified our daughter was in a car wreck and not expected to live. She was in her first year of college near Spokane WA. I was able to get emergency leave, but by the time I arrived at her side, she was in a coma and never revived. We TRIED to pray (did our best), and my wife had more faith than I, but neither of us knew exactly how to go about it. No doubt this was at the root of why we later enrolled in Bible college.
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