FEBRUARY 2017
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THE GOOD NEWS Effective Prayer
If only you would prepare your heart and lift up your hands to him in prayer! Job 11:13 NLT From the Bible we know that although the disciples ob-
served Jesus raising the dead, healing the sick, giving sight to the blind, feeding the multitudes, preaching the Word, walking on water, and casting out demons, they asked Him to teach them how to do only one thing. They asked Him to do the one thing they somehow understood to be founda- tional to everything else He did. They asked Him to teach them to pray (Luke 11:1). We too, have a sense that there is power in prayer and that prayer ought to be a greater priority in our lives — yet
most of us struggle in prayer and so we turn to a simple text that can help us grow out of these prayer struggles into a life of triumphant prayer! James 5:16-18 “16 Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one
another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. 17 Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months. 18 And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit.” “Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may
be healed. A casual reading of this statement might give the impression that we are to tell other people all about our secret sins. But that is not at all the thought! Primarily James means that when we sin against someone else, we should be quick to confess our sin to the person we have wronged. What takes place in our relationship with God can either be impeded and enhanced by how we get along with one another. We can’t be right with God if we are not right with one another. An honest love and concern for one another is powerful way to combat spiritual decline and downfall and therefore we find strengthening against, and even healing of, the things that harm our relation- ship with God and other believers thru personal confession to one another and prayer- ful intercession for one another. The healing in this verse is not just physical healing, but healing of our hearts,
dealing with its sinful attitudes and selfish motivations! Solomon said, “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life.” (Proverbs 4:23) Confes- sional honesty between Christians and prayer for one another are essential acts that keep our hearts right before the Lord and among men. Instead of holding grudges and allowing resentments to build up, we can “pray for one another” and in that we are diligently maintaining our spiritual unity and health in Godly fellowship. James further states that, “the effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails
much.” This is a necessary and powerful way in which believers can seek and expe- rience the powerful working of God in and between our lives. The first point to note is that believers who are harboring sin and unforgiveness in their hearts, will not be able to pray effectively. Sin will quench the Spirit and diminish even our fervor for prayer. This is why confession precedes prayer. A righteous man, that is a person who is right with God by grace alone, thru faith
alone in Christ alone, is a powerful tool in God’s hands. No one is righteous by his or her own good deeds, but only by faith in God thru Jesus Christ. The righteous there- fore, enjoy privileged access to the throne of grace and can pray effectively and fer- vently. Tremendous power is made available through a good man's earnest prayer.
James uses Elijah as a powerful example of the effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man [which] avails much. Do you remember the OT prophet Elijah? He was a man just like us! A man “with a nature like ours.” Not a perfect man, but a man with his own fears and doubts. A man who knew all the frailties of human nature, but still a man used mightily of God! The time that James refers to, regarding Elijah’s example is found in 1 Kings
17:1-19:10. Ahab was the ungodly king of Israel at that time. Through his wicked wife Jezebel, he became a worshiper of Baal, and led the people of Israel into a vile form of idolatry. "Ahab did more to provoke the LORD God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel who were before him" (1 Kings 16:33). The direct result of this sin was that God set Elijah to pray earnestly and consistently and a total drought came upon Israel for three and a half years.
By Pastor John Stewart Then Elijah had the famous spiritual showdown with 450 of Ahab’s priests of Baal
on Mt. Carmel. When Baal’s servants after praying all day long could muster no power from their false god, then Elijah cried out, “LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that You are God in Israel and I am Your servant, and that I have done all these things at Your word. 37 “Hear me, O LORD, hear me, that this people may know that You are the LORD God, and that You have turned their hearts back to You again.” ( 1 Kings 18:36b-38). When the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt offering, the altar, and the water that was set before Him, the Israelites were convinced, and they turned back to the Lord. Then Elijah prayed again and the drought ended. The example of Elijah is given
as an encouragement to us to pray for those who have sinned and wandered away from fellowship with God. The effective fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much or, as someone has paraphrased it: "The prayer of a man whose heart is right with God works wonders." Remember, lest we be tempted to think of him as belonging to a higher creation
than ourselves, James reminded us that Elijah was a man with the same kind of frail flesh. He was a mere man, subject to the same weaknesses and infirmities as other men. He prayed earnestly that it should not rain. In fact, not a drop fell on the land for three and a half years. Then he prayed again; the heavens then gave the rain, and the earth sprouted with vegetation and fruit as usual. The point is that prayer is im- portant and that prayer is powerful! And we like Elijah can be used mightily of God thru the power of effective and fervent prayer if we seek right relationship with the Lord and with His people. Pastor John Stewart is the Executive Pastor at Revival Christian Fellow- ship, Menifee.
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