PRAYING GOD’S WAY – 6

FAITH – THE KEY

‭Hebrews 11:1, 6 NLT‬
[1] “Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see….
[6] “And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.”

We have already discovered that each person in the Trinity has a part to play in this work of prayer. However, to the place and work of the Godhead in prayer, we must add one more person to the circle and one more ingredient to prayer for prayer to be the most powerful way in which God works to fulfill His purposes in the His kingdom. We are that person and faith is that ingredient!

No human can figure out why God has chosen to work this way. We can only conclude that God is so magnificent in His love and grace that He has chosen both to initiate and to work through our prayers.

How does He initiate prayer? He either sets up situations that need His intervention in individual’s lives….personal needs, family issues, local or national situations, etc., or He reveals His intentions through His promises.

Take, for example, His promise to David.

‭2 Samuel 7:11-12, 16, 18, 25 NLT‬
[11]… “‘Furthermore, the Lord declares that he will make a house for you—a dynasty of kings! [12] For when you die and are buried with your ancestors, I will raise up one of your descendants, your own offspring, and I will make his kingdom strong….
[16] Your house and your kingdom will continue before me for all time, and your throne will be secure forever.’”…
[18] Then King David went in and sat before the Lord and prayed, “Who am I, O Sovereign Lord, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far?…
[25] “And now, O Lord God, I am your servant; do as you have promised concerning me and my family. Confirm it as a promise that will last forever.”

On the basis of God’s promise to David, David said the “Amen!” and God kept His promise despite the unfaithfulness of some of his descendants. God’s promise to David was eventually fulfilled when Jesus was born, son of David, to be the King of Israel forever.

Faith plays a pivotal role in our prayers.

‭Hebrews 11:6 NLT‬
[6] “And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.”

Faithless prayer is one of the Bible’s impossibles. Without faith in God and His promises, prayer has no solid foundation. James says that, without faith, we are tossed about like a wave on a stormy sea.

‭James 1:6-8 NLT‬
[6]”But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. [7] Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. [8] Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do.”

So, what is faith?

‭Hebrews 11:1 NLT‬
[1]”Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see.”

The Bible’s definition of faith is not easy to understand. I think that faith is like this… Say I want to knit a garment. I choose my pattern and follow the instructions, keeping the picture of the completed garment in front of me as I work. If I stick faithfully to the instructions, my finished work should look exactly like the picture.

God’s promises are our hope, like the picture of our finished garment. Faith is like keeping the picture in view so that we make a replica of the garment in the picture. Faith is anchored to our hope, what God has promised, the unshakeable assurance that God will do what He says. Without this trust in the reliability of God’s Word, we are doubting God Himself, thinking that He might be lying to us. How can He respond to us if we don’t trust Him?

Therefore, without faith, prayer becomes nothing more than empty words.

This brings me to an important part of our hope. Hope, the picture of the finished ‘garment’, is provided by God’s promises. If we don’t have a promise, we have nothing on which to anchor our faith. Our prayers, if we have no promise on which to base our hope, are like shooting in the dark.

How important, then, that we soak in God’s Word so that we learn His ways. Then we will understand His will and learn to pray with Him to achieve His purposes.

‭Romans 12:2 NLT‬
[2] “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.”

‭1 John 5:14-15 NIV‬
[14] “This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. [15] And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.”