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June 30, 2021 6:00 am
You have a situation in your life. Drag on and on and you wonder why God is in answering your prayers.
Maybe not sure why but it feels like there's some distance over there something wrong but you can't quite put your finger if that's you stay with me because today were going to talk about how to restore your God and experience his power in your prayers. Thanks for joining us for this Edition of Living on the Edge Chip Ingram, Living on the Edge features the Bible to this daily discipleship program were currently in a series called power.
List any of the previous messages in the series are available on either the chipping or about Loretta Living on the Edge.just click the broadcast well if you're wanting to learn how to access God's power in your prayers what's Georgia for part two of his talk three conditions for power in prayer. The Lord wants us to understand is that these promises is talking about will supernaturally work there's some paperwork involved. You need to meet the conditions need to come with a clear conscience and you need to come with an obedient lifestyle that somebody at this point, I hope you're asking well that sounds pretty open to interpretation mean to have an obedient lifestyle.
What's it mean to obey his commandments while he's in italics. Look at verse 23 explains very clearly what commands is talking about.
And this is his command is that clear enough for you. There's two things. The first one is to believe in the name of his son and to love one another as he commanded us the tense of the verb here for believe it's a tense and the verb means at a time.
At a point in time.
The very first thing you need to do to fulfill this commandment is if you never asked Jesus Christ to be the Savior of your life is never look to the cross and said Jesus died on the cross for me.
His death paid the price for my sin and he rose from the dead to forgive me. All my sin has offered a free gift. If you never receive that free gift is that the first step of the and until you've done that. This promise doesn't apply to you guys not to hear your prayer. See we got this idea that sort of goddess or a benevolent king of a democratic society and that there's all these hotlines and go to heaven and he answers them all the same he doesn't. Some people call. He answers very regularly other people call and call and he says you know I left a few messages on your recorder, and when you take care of the few messages that I left on your recorder.
Call me back. See, we do have a part and see. We'll deal with that and you know we keep calling calling calling and then we get hot not because you don't answer. He answers so the first step is that if you never ask him to come into your life and forgive you do that today back I encourage you to skip out on the rest of this message, and glaze forward like this make people think you're listening and have a private conversation with God and asking to come in your life and forget the second thing though it says a different tense of the verb. This is present tense ongoing habitually it says what's the second part of that was his commands to love one another is is a loving one another that command needs to be fulfilled. There ought to be a love for one another in the body of Christ that is so radical that that has to be fulfilled before you meet the condition for God to hear your prayers. At this point in time.
No, again, I can explain what it means to really love each other. I'm here today are not. I sang the songs on that is need, but this passage will explain what's it mean to love one another look up at verse 16.
He gives us the definition of love. The measuring the litmus test. This is how we know what love is Jesus Christ laying down his life for us. One is a choice. Love is a radical sacrifice. Love is seeing the needs of someone else and putting aside your once your desires and expanding your time, your energy, your resources, and even your life if need be to give to someone else.
That's what love is. So now we got back up and say am I loving people like or do I just love them when it's convenient is my attitude in the body what they have for me are you meeting my needs. I like little bit more this you think you could start earlier start later. Whatever you notice in verse 16 and we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers know you think about this condition see the people there seeing God do graphic supernatural works of power in their life are people that are likely loving their brothers and sisters in Christ who are expanding and giving their life, their heart, their time, their emotions and their finances to meet the needs of other people. That's who qualifies for this promise. In fact, verse 17 he gives us the first illustration is a batch to bag a picture for you. Look at verse 17 if anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need, but has no pity on him, and the love of God being possible. Johnny, see him scratching his head.
You say that you belong to God, and that you are desperate and God gave you and gave all that he had for you and now you're forgiven. In your part of his family, and here you are part of this family and other people were part of his family have these needs over here and you've got this time and the spiritual gifts and these money resources and you know they have needs and you don't share what you have with them John goes how can God's love being see the reason Jesus talk more about money in the New Testament than heaven and hell combined because the fact of the matter is money will tell you who's your God, and when other people have needs and I can't give up my time or my emotional energy or if I can't give my finances off the top. The love other people in the life of God is in operating in my life I'm saying it's my time, it's my money. Who gave you the job God who gave you the health God did. Who gave you the family, God did. Who gave me the home.
God did, and we told you you can afford not to.
Because when we are not radically loving and giving. Just of our money, our energy, our time and were not loving other people. And if you're not letting other people you're not keeping his command. And if you're not keeping his command. This promise does not apply to you. God will not hear your prayer. That's a condition you know it's like saying, oh God, oh God, I need a lot I need align aligning alone and he says fine and you thought the paperwork and you say I don't do paperwork is when you do the paperwork. Then you qualify to be a recipient of the eternal God of the universe who wants to give you more than you ever dreamed wants to do stuff in your family who wants to do stuff at work wants to do things in relationships.
It would take a miracle.
God has miracles. I think Kevin really get to heaven, as it were an open door.
There is a miracle room you say wow those shells are all full. He said yeah I try to give away the people and I to work it out themselves at the storehouse of your Old Testament says you can sneak up on the storehouse of security. The third condition goes beyond a clear conscience in an obedient lifestyle.
Condition number three you can write the words age earning heart age earning heart and what I mean is a a heart that longs to please God. God answers the prayers of those who do the things that are pleasing in his sight.
Did you notice at verse 22 and we know that we have whatever we ask because one we keep his commandments into building on that we do what is pleasing in his sites is the new American Standard see there some of us part personalities and partner background. We want to find out where the lines are we supposed to keep these four rules okay.
Keep these five rules okay upkeep of the other 29 rules I'll get them a list of these people make charts when they go check Facebook revive okay to chapters a day to pray for so long and what God wants you to understand is that he wants age earning heart not rote X curial legalistic obedience. He wants you and I not just to do what's right to say okay I don't do this right of this or I don't do that, but instead he wants you to have a heart inside that longs to please him and your obedience flows, not out of duty and obligation but have a love relationship. He wants you do not want you to go beyond just exterior obedience. While I kept the commandments okay got to come through. I cycled off the loan papers so that work that way. I spent a good portion of the first through three years of my Christian life finding out where the lines were having never read the Bible. I do know many rules nor did I know that God had him for my benefit, but I will. Here's what here's what I do I find okay now this line right here is sin okay and this is what I did not say that I didn't write the letter law that kind heart doesn't meet the condition of the God of the universe to answer prayer. I memorized just begin to grow and I start to get the Bible I got a Bible study and I started share my faith in even a couple guys lease prayed a prayer with me to become Christians.
And then I see him in the hallway and they see me in a dock in turn go down the other stairs had cooties or something and I was doing all the quote right things but there is no fruit my life.
Nothing was happening and then I begin to pray seriously got how come you not using me that convicted me about a relationship with my girlfriend all now I wasn't sleeping with her. We didn't do the big one, but I'll tell you what our relationship did not honor God in the things we did do did not honor God. It was not pleasing to God.
All I drew a line is again as long as we didn't have intercourse. I guess I'm okay let me ask is your focus in the Christian life trying to see how close you can get to sin without sinning or is yours one of a child's heart running to the father and saying you know not sure if this is right or wrong. You want me to do see a picture that look back at number at the Psalm of David.
Remember how he's described, he described as a man after God's own heart. You want to hear his yearnings. You will hear his heart listen to how he approaches God. This is why God answers prayers.
He met the condition, I will sing of loving kindness and justice to the old heart sing praises. That is, that sound something like oh gosh, it's time to have a quiet time is it duty or is it delight to get it wants to be with God is. I will give heed to the blameless way.
When will you come to me all walk within my housing integrity.
My heart is character. He wants to be morally pure.
He wants the size of his heart to be clean is known as an responses that you let me that's a heart pleasing to God. He goes on to say no worthless thing before my eyes. A perverse heart little apart from me. See, I think David was living today that he would put that on the front of his VCR and his TV. I will put no worthless thing before my eyes. He wouldn't say okay now this G, PG uses PG-13 or is this an R1 that I heard his counterclaim play those games stick at the site. Can I sit down on the couch with the Lord Jesus and St. you like this movie Lord not okay except for this this this or that. Talk about legalism here.
I'm talking about longing to please God, instead of always seeing how close we can come in I just I just can't get the idea that the Lord just watch people's head getting blown often at all the junk that we see is that all what is really encouraging. Ask yourself, does your heart year to please God and what you see and what you do notice verse five says I'll get right of anyone who whispers evil things about someone else is relationships to other humans in the gossip its communist penalizing is an early trash upon the person you talk too much ungodly not well God who heard the same thing.
If you talk about your really fun. Look at is relationships. I approve of those who are faithful. Those are completely honest, no liars, no hypocrites. She wanted to run with people at heart, Proverbs 1320 says he dwells with Wiseman to be wise with the companionable fool will suffer harm you run with who you hang out with. Ask God to give you a desire and a yearning because here's the deal. God wants to do marvelous supernatural tremendous works in your life but some of us not filled out the loan papers and you're not on praying ground when you pray, you haven't put yourself in a position to realize God really loves you and you can have a clear conscience in put yourself in a position to obey his commandments because you honestly love sacrificially. Others never put yourself in a position worry, you can say in your heart of hearts, I blow it in perfection, it's up and down, up and down and struggle, but it's that sense of all Lord I want to be your man. I would be your woman to be a student that would really be pleasing to you and I know I fail and I know I struggle and I know you understand. See the flow of New Testament Christianity in Old Testament faith has to do with abiding the relationship of fellowship that obedience and love and expenditure of energy and time and resources close out of love, not and if you don't want to give of yourself, of your time and your resources. It just tells you a whole lot more about you than you really want it tells you about your relationship or lack your heart a part of the living God.
I would just hate to see all the miracles get stuck up in heaven you'd like to open up for you.
Verse 24 summarizes it all and it's for you and me as we meet the conditions.
He says those who obey his commandments, ready for this live and him Zachary and he in them.
When you live this way, the power, the sweetness, the fellowship, the grace of God who lives in you and you live in him, and this is how we know that he lives in us.
We know it by the spirit. She gave us God wants to do great and mighty answers to prayer and we need to learn this week. It's not that he's unwilling it's the great majority of his people have filled out the loan. Be right back with application for this message. Conditions for power in prayer for this series the power, whether you're a new Christian or a seasoned follower of Christ. Prayer is absolutely essential to our relationship with God.
It's how we communicate with them as his children, we are given free access anytime, anywhere. But how does that actually work in this series, you'll discover the steps to developing a dynamic prayer life.
How to remove common roadblocks to answer prayer and what it means to pray with confidence for limited time the resources for the power of prayer are discarded and the MP3s are always free for additional ordering and pricing details, visit LivingontheEdge.org or give us a call at AAA 83336003 hapless nurse top special offers, which were just under a week away from the end of our midyear match. I gotta say we've been blown away by people's generosity in partnership with us, but there still may be some people out there who don't know what this midyear match is or why we do it.could you take a minute and explain that Dave absolutely you know this is something that we've done for a number of years that literally spontaneously happened about eight or nine years ago, and a small group of our ministry partners have this passion to support the ministry, but also to inspire others to support the ministry and actually even beyond our ministry to learn to be generous. And so this month, dollar for dollar, every dollar a person gives all the way through July 6 will be match so it know one becomes 200 becomes 200 you get the idea. And what a lot of people don't know is that you know, like, 30, 40% of the total giving income comes out of this midyear match and so it supports everything from the daily broadcast to staff to pastoral training and will talk throughout the month about what it does and the impact that it has, but I just want to encourage people as they come to get this broadcast, and whether it's on the Abril podcast or the order something from Living on the Edge at our headquarters. This match is critical to the mission of Living on the Edge of helping Christians live like Christians and so my prayer is that as the Living on the Edge family listens that they would really become a part of the family and help us help others. So thanks for asking Dave will if you're already partnering with us. Thank you. What's happening here is part of your story too if you'd like to get in on what ship just described becoming a financial partner is a great way to do that. Especially right now because, thanks to a handful of donors. Every gift we received between now and July 6 will be doubled to send the gift just call us at AAA 83336003 that's AAA 333-6003, or if you prefer, you can donate online at http://livingontheedge.org hapless nurse just up donate, let me thank you in advance for your generosity as we close today's program. Let's do a brief review of the three conditions for answered prayer that I think a lot of us have come to the point in our walks with God that one prayer is a challenge.
Number two, we often don't expect God to really answer and number three. We don't have a lot of friends that are experiencing powerful dynamic prayers and so what I'm trying to say is I think were missing something and I think were missing something big because we don't really understand these three conditions.
So let's review them and then I want to give you a great word of encouragement condition number one according to the apostle John is a clear conscience clear conscience gives us boldness and confidence before God in prayer second and obedient lifestyle. God answers the prayers that keep his commandments. And that wasn't just some moralistic thing was his commandments to love one another. It was his commandments that when we see someone in need that we meet those needs. In other words, God is in a socialist. What I mean by that is he doesn't answer everyone's prayers the same. He looks into the heart of his servants and he's wanted to develop a relationship with you. You wanting to change you. He's wanting you and me to learn to trust him and part of that journey is as we are obedient and as we are walking in faith the door of prayer and the power of prayer becomes real and we come with confidence and in faith and guess what God shows up in very powerful ways, and the third, the one we talked about mostly in this broadcast was yearning hard. God answers the prayers of those who do things that are pleasing in his sight. You know it's not just that we do what's right.
I want to remind you that he delights in you that he longs to give you the desires of your heart that you're his son that you're his daughter that he literally wants to do miraculous things that your friends, your relatives, the people at church the people at work would go like are you kidding. How did that happen. I mean, are you just a normal person like the rest of us, and your experience would be yes, but you're on this internal quiet journey were you saying, Lord, search me as Psalm 139 versus 23 and 24 is a prayer that David prayed that has made such a difference, at least in my life, as I've prayed upset all God search me and know my heart test me see if there be any wicked way in me, and then leave me in the right with the everlasting way and you know when you come before God with Lord if there's something wrong.
Show me he will and and Lord it it if there's a relationship that I need to address. He will but here's what I want you to remember you're his son you're his daughter he's for you. He loves you what were talking about here is I don't think talked a lot about when people talk about prayer. I think somehow we think that God is a cosmic vending machine and you know you say a few words and he's obligated to do this or to do that prayer is the sensitive relationship between the God of the universe who's adopted you. If you are a follower of Jesus as his son or daughter. And it's one and where he wants to shape your life draw you close to himself and literally give you the desires of your heart, but the conditions are clear conscience and obedient lifestyle and a yearning in your heart to say, Lord, what would be pleasing to you. When God sees that he shows up in power just before we close. I want you to know that as a staff we ask the Lord to help you take whatever your next faith step booze there's a way we can be helpful. We'd love to do that.
Maybe give us a call at AAA 333-6003 or connect with us have LivingontheEdge.org and while you're there you'll find resources on all kinds of topics, many of them absolutely free one. Glad you been with us and until next time. This is the same.
Thanks for listening to this Edition of Living on the Edge