Prevailing Prayer or Effectual Prayer |
Paying the Price of Revival |
What Prevailing Prayer is:
Benevolent desires are not prayer.
It obtains the blessing it seeks.
Essential Attributes of Prevailing Prayer
1. He must pray for a definite object.
2. In line with the revealed will of God.
3 ways God’s will is revealed.
a. Promises or predictions in the Bible.
b. By God’s providence.
c. By His Spirit.
Rom 8:26,27 Eph. 5:18
3. Pray with submission to the will of God.
Do not confuse submission with indifference.
To submit to any will of God is to obey it.
2 Sam 12:15-23 David accepting God’s will of child's death.
4. A desire for the blessing equivalent with its importance.
The desire will bear some proportion to the greatness of the blessing.
No degree of desire or importunity in prayer is improper.
Gen 32:26 Ex 32:10
Luke 11:8 teaches us to ask with importunity.
5. Offered from right motives.
It is not to be selfish, but to offer God glory.
6. Intercession of the Spirit.
To be in the will of God you need the Holy Spirit.
A faith produced by the operation of the Holy Spirit.
7. Persevering Prayer
If one has backslidden they can’t persevere till the answer comes.
Arrive at persevering prayer by a protracted process. Anxious about something they sigh
their prayer to God all day long.
Prevailing prayer show the marks of it such as Jacob.
Prayer is not effectual unless it is offered up with the agony of desire.
Paul had travail of the soul.
Jesus sweat drops of blood.
The agony present in Jonathan Edwards
Preacher of his day: Gilbert Tennent & George Whitefield
People prayed till their body was overpowered with their feelings.
Paul was willing to go to hell for others: Rom 9:3 Psalm 119:53,136 Jer 4:19 9:1 13:17
Est 4:1
Preachers with agony Livingston of Shotts (John Livingston)
William Chalmers Burns refereed to Livingston of Shotts
8. Pray a great deal
Secret of success of primitive ministers they had callous knees.
9. Offer prayer in the name of Jesus.
Drawing on Jesus' Account
Pray in faith
10. Renounce all your sins.
Renounce them forever.
11. Pray in faith
Expect to obtain what you ask for.
Don’t let others failure or err keep you from the battle.
Why God Requires Such Prayer
Strong desires. Agonizing supplications
1. Illustrate the strength of God’s feelings.
Travail of the soul in prayer.
As soon as Zion travailed, she brought froth Isa. 66:8
2. Natural results of great benevolence regarding the danger of sinners
3. The Soul of the Christian when it is burdened must have relief.
4. Feelings themselves overpower the body but are not spiritual.
5. It forms a strong bond between Christ and the Church.
6. Travail creates a strong bond between the prayer warriors and new converts.
Gal 4:19 Col 1:27 Isa 8:18 Heb 2:13
7. Way for church to receive great blessings without being injured by them. More likely to be humble and give glory to God when blessings come.
Remarks -
Prayer is lost because people don’t follow up their desires.
Persevere in prayer for what is desired, don’t quench the Holy Spirit by inattention. Follow the leading of the Spirit until you have prayed the effectual fervent prayer that availeth much.
A spiritual work will not see much success unless there is prayer for it.
--- Notes by Scott McCrae
II What we are to Believe When we Pray
We must believe in God.
God will give us when we seek Him. Heb.. 11:6
We are to Believe that we will receive what we ask for.
III. When are we bound to Make This Prayer?
1. Don't question God's will if God has already make it clear what His will is.
God has promised. Who are we to question His will . The Scriptures mean just what they say.
2. When there is a general promise in the Scriptures which you can reasonably apply to the particular case.
3 Prophecy agreeable to the will of God.
Make it the ground for your special faith in prayer if the time has come.
Dan 9:2,3 Observed 70 years
seek God by:
Prayer; supplications, fasting – sackcloth and ashes
Ezk 36:37 God wants us to ask.
4 Signs of the Times, Providence of God and particular blessing is about to be given. Pray for the blessing for it to come.
5 Holy Spirit causes strong desires. We are bound to pray for it in faith. Rom 8:26,27
IV This Kind of Faith always obtains the Object
1.We get what we pray for or we would not know if we have an answer.
2.If we don't get what we pray for the Holy Spirit deceives us.
3.Matthew 7:9 God gives what we ask for.
4. Hebrews 5:7 Loud crying and tears.
Jesus prayer in garden cup pass from Him.
Paul praying for them to be removed.
Jesus was delivered from death and He was heard because of His piety. He was afraid He would die in the garden and was delivered.
Paul prayed outside of faith but received the answer that God's grace is sufficient. To pray in faith is to pray according to the will of God.
5.Faith prayer will obtain the blessing our faith rests on the evidence of it being the will of God.
V. How We are To Come Into this State of Mind?
State of mind to offer such prayer.
1. Obtain the evidence that God will give the blessing.
Search the Scriptures.
2.Cherish any desire you have. Watch and pray.
3.Entire Consecration to God is essential for the Prayer of Faith.
4.Persistence- Persevere pray day and night.
5. Be sure to walk every day with God.
VI.Objections Brought Against this Doctrine
1 Fanaticism and new revelation.
If God can give other evidence besides the senses where is the objection?
2 Are we pray for all to be saved?
We have no evidence that all will be saved. God has said many will be damed. John 17:9
3.All will be save if they repent but they won't.
4.When do we pray for someones salvation?
5.Pray of pious parents for children are not answered. Must believe in prayer of faith for it to be effective.
6. Will people think they are offering the prayer of faith when they are not?
This an argument against any kind of spiritual faith. Those who are of the spirit know the things of the spirit.
REMARKS
1 If you don't know the prayer of faith, then do you know spiritual things?
2 People miss God and the prayer of faith because they are not aware spiritually.
We are guilty if we don't believe.
People that don't know about faith prayer are offended when you talk about it.
Have you prayed in faith? Have you prayed until you are assured of the answer? How can you live without praying in faith? What is the Bible good for if you don't lay hold of its promises?