|
"...Shepherd the flock of God which is among
you, serving as overseers..." (1 Peter 5:2)
Elders
Morris Bass, Rick Holt , Joe
Price |
"...let them serve as deacons,
being found blameless..." (1 Tim. 3:10)
Deacons
Aaron Bass, Rich Brooks, Mike Finn
John Hague, Dan Head |
"And take...the sword of
the Spirit, which is the word of God" (Eph. 6:17)
In this issue:
Unanswered Prayers?
Sermon Outlines:
Unanswered Prayers?
Joe R. Price
God answers
the prayers of His people:
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! (Matt.
7:11)
Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that
you receive them, and you will have them. (Mk. 11:24)
And whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments
and do those things that are pleasing in His sight. (1 Jno. 3:22)
Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything
according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us,
whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of
Him. (1 Jno. 5:14-15)
For the eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, and His ears are open to
their prayers; but the face of the LORD is against those who do evil. (1
Pet. 3:12)
How then do
we harmonize these passages with occasions in Scripture when people say God
did not answer prayer? For example, when Jesus prayed, “O My Father, if
it is possible, let this cup pass from Me,” did God fail to answer him
since he died on the cross (Matt. 26:39)? When David was being pursued by
his enemies and he cried out, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?
Why are You so far from helping Me, And from the words of My groaning? O My
God, I cry in the daytime, but You do not hear; And in the night season, and
am not silent,” did God fail to answer David’s prayers (Psa. 22:1-2)?
When Paul begged the Lord three times to remove his “thorn in the flesh,”
did his prayers go unanswered by his God (2 Cor. 12:8)? If God answers
prayer, why didn’t He grant these requests?
The
Scriptures bear out that the answer to each of the preceding questions is a
resounding “NO!” God did not fail to answer their prayers. David went on
to write, “For He has not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the
afflicted; Nor has He hidden His face from Him; But when he (the afflicted,
i.e., David, jrp) cried to Him, He heard” (Psa. 22:24). This would
later be applied to Jesus, who was himself also heard in the garden
“because of his godly fear” (Heb. 5:7). Paul received an answer from
the Lord that magnified God’s grace in him (2 Cor. 12:9). God most
certainly answers the prayers of His people.
The issue is
not a failure by God to answer prayer. The issue is this; when people do
not get the answer to prayer they think they should receive, they
conclude God did not answer their prayer. This is faulty reasoning that
betrays a weakness of faith. To say one did not get the answer he wanted is
not to say that God did not answer the prayer. We have offered three Bible
examples (above) that establish this point.
More to the
point, why is it God does not always answer our prayers as soon as we want
and always in the way we expect? How do Christians maintain their faith in
God when prayers are answered differently than they expected?
Like children’s
requests to their parents, our requests to God are often short-sighted. Not
that there is necessarily anything wrong with the request; we just fail to
see the big picture of things. But, when a six year old asks for candy and
a coke 30 minutes before dinner, he gets an answer to his request, but not
the one he wants. Why not? (After all, he asked for it!) Not because
parents begrudge their child treats, but because they want him to eat the
upcoming meal. Similarly, God gives good gifts to His children who ask of
Him (Matt. 7:11). But like children, we do not always see clearly; God
does. He knows what is best for us. He did not begrudge Paul improved
health when He did not remove the thorn in his flesh; He saw a greater
benefit for Paul and for others by not removing it. Paul would learn
greater dependency and humble reliance on God’s grace and power. God’s
assurance that He answers prayer encourages our spiritual interests and
growth of faith. We know God hears us and that His answers grow out of His
great love for us. God will give us what is best for us. What a loving and
patient God we have, to respond to our requests this way! We must not be
like the whining child who, because he gets a different answer from the one
he wants, says, “You don’t love me!” Loving parents give their children
what is best for them even when the child does not understand at the
moment. God will more abundantly give to those who ask Him (Matt. 7:11). He
answers with divine wisdom and immeasurable love.
David was
perplexed over the apparent silence of God when his enemies were harassing
him. But, he remembered the holiness of God and took comfort in God’s sure
presence and power (Psa. 22:3-5). Someone said if God has a fault it is
that He is too slow to act. No, God is faultless; He is not too slow to
act. It is our faulty expectation that God must conform to our time frame
that makes us think God is slow to act. David chose to remember the history
of his fathers and the deliverance God gave them from their oppressors.
Sometimes many years passed before God’s deliverance came; sometimes, even
centuries. But, God heard their cries and knew their pain; He answered
their prayers according to His purposes (Exo. 3:7-10).
What part of
God’s character did David focus on as he recalled God’s deliverance of
Israel? He focused on the holiness of God (Psa. 22:3). God would not be
holy and ignore the cries of His people. It is reprehensible to think of
parents who deliberately ignore their children’s cries for help when they
are in trouble. Could God refuse to respond to the cries of Israel and
still be a holy God? Could He, who had made great promises to their
ancestors, now ignore their hardships? No; not and maintain His integrity.
One reason we have no doubt God hears and answers our prayers is because He
is a holy God. We know He acts in holiness. We know that regardless of the
answer we receive from Him, His holiness is at the heart of it. When
measured as we count time, the delay in answer may appear to speak
against the holiness of God. But, when measured against eternity and our
need to grow in faith and reliance upon God, we achieve a new and better
perspective. The Scriptures affirm that God speedily avenges His elect who
cry to Him day and night (Lk. 18:7-8). But, He is also looking for faith in
times of trial (Lk. 18:8; Jas. 1:2-4; 1 Pet. 1:6-9). Will the Lord find us
continuing to pray in faith in moments of trial, or find us abandoning hope
and accusing Him of not caring for us or for justice (Lk. 18:1-5)?
We must not
become discouraged when God’s answers do not conform to the answers we want
or anticipate. This does not mean God has forsaken us; it means God knows
and cares more for us than we are able to know and care for ourselves!
Different answers do not mean unanswered prayers; they mean better
answers than we anticipated. Only with the eye of faith are we able to
think of every answer to prayer in this way. Without faith, Paul could not
“glory in (his) weaknesses” when his physical ailment was not removed
(2 Cor. 12:9). Without faith, David would have been driven to despair when
pursued by his enemies. Instead, he chose to fear and praise God (Psa.
22:23). Jesus was so committed to the will and purposes of the Father that
he looked beyond his momentary pain and sorrow to the glory of fulfilling
the Father’s will for human redemption (Matt. 26:42; Jno. 17:1).
When we are
tempted to doubt God’s love, presence and power because our prayers seem to
go unanswered, remember that “if we ask anything according to His will,
He hears us. And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that
we have the petitions that we have asked of Him” (1 Jno. 5:14-15).
Praying with respect for and submission to the will of God assures good
answers to our prayers. The answers may challenge our faith, but they will
always be right.
A popular song in
the ’90’s said, “Sometimes I thank God, for unanswered prayers…” But the
Christian confidently says, “I always thank God for answering my prayers out
of His holiness, His wisdom and His love for me. I know that He hears all
my prayers and always answers them in His time, according to His purposes
and for my good.” Our faith is this: “we know that all things work
together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called
according to His purpose” (Rom. 8:28).
But You, O
Lord, do not be far from Me; O
My Strength, hasten to help Me! (Psalm 22:19)
Top
You can find the
complete outline of this sermon at
BIBLE ANSWERS
"The Gospel Which Was Preached" (Preaching Christ)
Scripture Reading:
Acts 8:4-13
1. The gospel came
from God, not man, Gal. 1:11-12.
2. Jerusalem church was persecution & scattered (Acts 8:1); they went
everywhere preaching the “word” (8:4), “Christ” (8:5).
3. Philip preached three things, Acts 8:12.
4. Unless we receive this truth we are not receiving the word of God like
the Samaritans did, Acts 8:14.
I. WHEN HE
PREACHED CHRIST, PHILIP PREACHED ABOUT:
A. The Kingdom
of God, 8:12 (Matt. 6:33).
1.
Prophesied, anticipated, arrived: Psa. 2:6-7; Mk. 1:14-15; Acts 13:32-33;
Col. 1:13.
2. The church, Matt. 16:18-19; Heb. 12:22-23, 28.
3. Entrance into heavenly kingdom, 2 Pet. 1:11; Matt. 7:21-23; Acts
14:22.
B. The
Name of Jesus Christ, Acts 8:12.
1.
Gospel is power/authority of Christ (1 Ths. 1:5): King (Acts 2:36),
exclusive (Matt. 28:18), active (Eph. 1:20-23), salvation (Acts 4:12).
2. Supreme, Ac 5:29; 4:19-20; Col. 3:17.
C. Water
Baptism, Acts 8:12-13; 8:35-36 (Acts 2:38; 1 Pet. 3:21; Mk.16:15-16; Acts
10:48).
II. MANY NOT
CONTENT WITH PREACHING CHRIST TODAY,
Gal. 1:8-10; 1 Cor. 4:6. Which gospel do we want: Christ’s gospel, or…
A. The “No
Kingdom Gospel,” Mk. 9:1; Acts 1:8; 2:1-4.
B. The “Faith Only Gospel,” Heb. 5:9 (Lk. 6:46; 17:10; Jno. 14:15).
C. The “Social Gospel,” Ro. 14:17; 1Co.11:22, 34.
D. The “Unity-in-Diversity Gospel,” 2 Jno. 9-11 (Jno. 17:17, 20-23; 14:6;
Eph. 5:8-11).
Conclusion
1. Preach, receive,
obey & defend 1st gospel, Ac 8:12
2. Power of God to save, Rom. 1:16-17; 1 Cor. 1:21.
3. Lost until we believe & obey it, Rom. 10:13-17.
Top
You can find the
complete outline of this sermon at
BIBLE ANSWERS
Marriage: Designed for Success by God
Scripture Reading:
Genesis 2:18-25
1. Marriage faces
withering attacks in our society.
2. Satan always casts doubt on God’s will, Gen. 3:4-5.
3. Marriage can succeed: when marriage is destroyed, society is destroyed;
the church & souls are destroyed.
I. THE NATURE OF
MARRIAGE,
Gen. 2:18-25.
A. Ordained by
God, Matt. 19:4-6.
1.
Covenant before God, Prov. 2:17; Mal. 2:14 (Ezek. 16:8, 59).
2. Honorable & to be honored by all, Heb. 13:4.
3. Regulated & judged by divine law, Rom. 7:1-3.
B.
Universal in Scope, Gen. 2:21-22 (Matt. 19:4).
C. Provides Companionship, Gen. 2:18.
D. Prevents Immorality, Gen. 2:25; 1 Cor. 7:1-2 (Prov. 5:15-20).
II. DESIGNED FOR
SUCCESS,
Gen. 2:24 (Matt. 19:5-6).
A. Marriage is
Permanent (leave) (for life, Rom. 7:2; 1 Cor. 7:39).
B. Marriage Thrives on Mutual Commitment (cleave), cf. Deut. 10:20
(1 Cor. 6:18; 1 Pet. 3:5-7; Prov. 31:10-11; Eccl. 9:9).
C. Marriage is the Union of Two Lives into One (Matt. 19:6; 1 Cor. 7:4
(Eph. 5:22, 28-32).
III. BUILD
UNBREAKABLE MARRIAGE,
Eccl. 9:9
A. Examine
Yourself, 2 Cor. 13:5.
1.
Communication, Jas. 1:19; Col. 3:8-9; 4:6.
2. Cooperation, 1 Pet. 3:7; Prov. 21:9, 19.
3. Character: Col. 3:12-15 (Matt. 7:12).
B. Keep
Christ at the Center of Your Marriage, Eph. 5:21-25.
Conclusion
1. Satan wants to
destroy your love, marriage & home…your soul (Jas. 4:7).
2. Your marriage can thrive…be better today than yesterday…can be a haven of
peace & joy.
Top
|
