In today’s sermon, Pastor Babij continues teaching on the characteristics of authentic Christ-like discipleship. The second characteristic is uncompromising faith; such faith is not a “hope so” faith but one that truly believes God will perform what He has promised. Pastor Babij also explains the third characteristic: an uncommon desire to pray to God. Christians should pray continuously during the day and seek the presence of God by always praying.
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okay let’s take our Bibles this morning and turn to the gospel of Mark of course when I finished the gospel of Mark I had already finished uh the whole book I am going back and just looking gleaning from it some of the characteristics that are important for all Disciples of Jesus Christ and that’s what we’re looking at there’s actually eight uh characteristics that emerge under the sanctifying influence of the Holy Spirit and Conformity to the word of God and of course as the Lord is developing our character uh as a disciple he’s doing that so we would be able to serve with a develop in Christlike attitude and of course attitudes and behaviors that are consistent with the spirit of God definitely sanctifying us and making us more like uh more into the image of Christ of course all the original disciples had to learn these characteristics uh it they can’t be bypassed in other words uh so all the followers of Christ will be found at different levels of their spir spiritual growth developing a christlikeness in which they uh did not have before or had before but is growing more deeply in that characteristic and more abiding in that Char characteristic so all these characteristics uh the holy spirit is developing us um always gives rise to a further further Godly attitudes and further Godly behaviors so last week we looked at the first one which was the crowning characteristic and that characteristic was uh the first characteristic of authentic disciples is unconditional surrendering to God’s will another way to say that is obedience Jesus says if you love me you’ll do what I say all right so that is the first thing that is the one of the most important characteristics of of of being a disciple is that you are someone who is willing and wanting to not just not forced to but wanting to obey the Lord in in all that he communicates to us in the word of God so this Lord’s day I would like to look at consider the second and third of the eight characteristics of authentic Christlike disciples and so the second one uh the second characteristic of authentic disciples is uncompromising faith in God now if you look at Mark 11 verse 22 and 20- 24 in that section of scripture the Lord challenges his disciples where he says in verse number 22 and Jesus answered Mark 11:22 Jesus answered saying to them have faith in God now didn’t it mean that they didn’t have faith in God at that point I don’t believe so I believe what he was challenging them to is a deeper more abiding more consistent trust in the character of God for he says in verse 23 truly I say to you whoever says to this mountain be taken up and cast into the sea and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says is going to happen it will be granted to him so in other words the Lord is trying to dispel pushing doubt and so real faith is absent of doubt and fear real Faith knows that the disciple source of all power is God himself so the the disciples inner attitude is trusting God now Faith is Not Mere consent to a a proposition about God as revealed in Jesus Christ his son it is the opp Opposite of swelling Pride or of self trust it is really humility before God a Readiness to conform to his will it is a conviction that he cannot lie nor does he fail at anything he does it is a Reliance on him in spite of our outward circumstances no matter how trying they may be according to Webster’s Dictionary faith is defined as the ascent of the mind to the truth of what is declared by another and then then resting on that person’s Authority and veracity uh without other evidence so that means for the Christian then faith is believing that the promises of God are true simply because he says they are true because his character backs up everything that he promises to all uh his children and that is contained in the word of God if the Lord did not keep his promise we would have to question his character but because he does keep his promise his promise is he we must trust his character so to examine the essence of faith we must turn to Hebrews so let’s turn to Hebrews chapter 11 that’s that great chapter on on faith and I want you to notice in Hebrews chap 11 verse number one the essence of biblical Faith really has three things that are connected to it the first thing is that a Biblical Faith accepts God’s word all right verse number one of Hebrews 11 now Faith is the Assurance of things hoped for and the conviction of things not seen all right now so the first thing that comes out of that starting statement in chapter 11 of Hebrews is that really a Biblical Faith accepts God’s word but that also means this we have to understand what a Biblical faith is not a Biblical faith is not substance talk about a blind leap in the dark that’s what faith is that’s not Faith at all our faith has has great amount of substance to it it has uh content to it we are not just believing in anything we’re believing in something and we’re believing in someone and so that means that our faith has a foundation to it and that Foundation is a firm foundation in fact the King James Bible says this about that same verse it says now instead of using Assurance it uses the word substance now Faith is the substance of things hoped for the evidence of Things Not Seen so viewed from this perspective faith is something objective that in the Here and Now gives things hope for for a really a substantial reality which will unfold in God’s appointed time in other words it gives us a confidence a trust and an assurance in What God Says to be true so faith is an assurance faith is a as it says in the King James is the substance all right it has something to it it has consistency to it it’s like the psalmist who wrote this in Psalm 39: 6-9 it says surely every man walks about as a phantom surely they make an uproar or for nothing he amasses riches and does not know who will gather them and now Lord for what do I wait and this is what he says my hope is in you deliver me from all my transgressions make me not a reproach of the foolish I become mute I do not open my mouth because it is you who have done it see he that is an expression of trusting in the character of God not in riches not in circumstances not in themselves and not in even the turmoil they that may be happening in one’s life not not just losing it all because trouble has come into one’s life but trusting in the character of God now here is something very important for adjusting your understanding of biblical faith biblical faith is that it is absolutely certain that what it what it believes is true and what it expects or hopes for will come to pass so biblical faith has a substance to it also biblical Faith what it’s not it’s not just the hopo faith you know you talk to people and they say well you you you believe God’s going to do this and they’ll say well I hope he he does that well that’s not the kind of hope the Bible’s talking about our passage includes uh this all important word for faith is the Assurance of things hoped for so when hope is used as a verb Hope and Faith are virtually synonymous a noun as a noun hope refers to actually directly to the promises of God and if we just look at the promises of God right in the book of Hebrews the uh here are some of the things that we are to hope for in Hebrews chapter 2 verse number five we’re to hope for a world to come all right is there going to be a world to come do you have you seen the world to come do you no we haven’t seen the world to come all what we’re doing is we’re trusting that there is a world to come there’s going to be a new Heaven and new earth why because God says so so see and that’s what faith is Faith is trusting in God and what he says is true also the promise of Eternal inheritance it tells us in Hebrews 9:15 there is an eternal inheritance that is for all his Saints do I have that inheritance yet no but how do I have it I have it by faith it’s not by sight I have it I have it by faith because I trust in God’s character Hebrews 10:37 there’s going to be a second coming of Christ how do I know that well I know it because God says it and I know it because what God says is true and that becomes something that you and I need to definitely be putting our faith and trust in as we consider living for the Lord Jesus Christ and so now this morning we’re just considering this again we’re considering that this um this is something that we need in our life to be trusting God always trusting God for everything that he is doing uh in our life and so when we do that then we know that our faith is growing as a disciple it tells us in Scripture that he promises Eternal salvation and rest are we going to have rest someday yes he promises that he teaches he tells us in Hebrews 12:28 there’s going to be an unshakable kingdom is that going to take place yes it’s going to take place so as a verb hope speaks of our response to God’s promise in other words he offers us hope that’s the noun form and we can have hope the verb form in him and in his guarantees we can believe them with absolute confidence so hope here is not a hope so hope I hope it happens that’s just W wishful thinking a Biblical hope looks forward with utter conviction and expectancy it is not a hope mingled with uncertainty and doubt those who live in doubt are actually opposed to Faith essentially they are denying the hope of God and what is true it was Charles Spurgeon who said it like this I would recommend he said you either believe God up to the hilt or else not believe it at all believe this book of God every letter of it or else reject it there is no logical standing placed between the two he said be satisfied with nothing less than a faith that swims in the depths of divine revelation a faith that paddles about the edges of the water is a poor Faith at best it is little better than a dry land Faith it’s not good for much see this is the kind of faith we ought to have in God also a Biblical faith is not a faith focused on on what is seen I mentioned that already but if you notice the passage in Hebrew 11:1 it’s a conviction of Things Not Seen remember we’re not living by sight right now we’re living by faith that means there’s going to be things that God tells us in the world word of God that almost seem impossible that they would ever take place but they are only possible because they’re connected to the character of the unchanging God who cannot lie and must tell us the truth so we see here that the scripture uses the word conviction in verse number one the conviction of things this is a uh some say this is a a a inward result of proving something of believing something of course it’s transl here a conviction see Faith does not focus in on the seen things of the world world but rather looks to the Unseen Promises of God Our Hope in our lives are to Hope in the Lord hope is a result of faith we have the conviction in regard to unseen the Unseen things is the fa is really faith in its Essence that they exist in spite of me not seeing them that’s that’s the essence of a Biblical disciple’s faith is I just believe God do that means you have all the answers no does does that mean that you can answer all the questions no you that’s not what it means it means that a disciple whether they can answer all the questions is someone who just simply trusts in the character of God we are certain of the Unseen things as if they if as if we saw them we are we are certain that we will have resurrected bodies someday as if we do have resurrected bodies someday we are certain as if we saw the second coming of Christ that he will come because we have it already by faith there will be a final judgment there will be a new Heaven and Earth and so these are the Unseen things that I I have by faith even though I don’t see them so we don’t see these things but we know for certain they are going to take place in other words we have a conviction in our heart that they will take place why because of the character of the one who told us about these things certainly it’s not always easy to trust God doubt despair fear continually work their way into our lives in different ways sometimes and usually through our personal trials that’s when way I think we question God the most is when we feel like we’re going through this trial I prayed about it Lord but it doesn’t seem like you’re answering me it doesn’t seem like I’m connecting to you and so at that particular point we begin to doubt but see this is the very thing Jesus always constantly rebuked his disciples about right how many times in the gospel of Mark did he say he rebuked them for so little faith you guys I’m saying that you if you have faith in me can move mountains and you the faith that you have you put it in a little thimble and then when you walk outside you you spill it and that’s all you have left instead of giving into doubt we can stand on God’s promises instead of succumbing to depression or worry we can trust God himself instead of being disheveled by what we see around us we can be grounded in what we can’t see but we know is absolutely true see that’s that’s the essence of Faith to have that conviction when we read the word of God that these thing things will take place so that means that Faith lays hold of what is promised and therefore hoped for as something real and solid though as yet unseen it is like the firm and solid response Shadrach mhach and abedo gave to King Nebuchadnezzar when they refused to serve his gods and bow down to the golden image that he set up Shadrach meach and abedo replied to the King after he ordered them to bow to his gods they said simp this oh Nebuchadnezzar we do not need to give you an answer concerning this matter if it be so our God whom we serve is able to Deliver Us from the furnace of blazing fire and he will deliver us out of your hand O King and then they said this but even if he does not let it be known to you oh King that we are not going to serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up see that is faith not only that is they’re trusting in the very character of God if God decides to rescue me then that’s his will but if he decides not to rescue me that may be his will too and I’m going to leave that up to him because I trust him so that’s a faith between life and death there but that’s a faith that has deep conviction in the word of God knowing that I’m not going to bow down to Idols because I serve the true and living God I also I I liked what uh George Mueller that old uh man of the faith who understood God’s promises and what it meant to live by faith he said this that the life lived by faith is a walk with God outside the gates of heaven so that’s what it is we’re we’re all kind of walking outside the gates of Heaven we’re not there yet we’re heading there that’s our destiny but we’re walking outside the gates so in other words the essence of biblical faith it rests solely on the Eternal Word of God and the character of God a second thing about biblical faith is is that it gains God’s approval and all disciples come to a place in their life where they want to live in a pleasing manner before the Lord don’t do they not all right that’s part of of living by faith is that we grow in faith and we want to please God and what we do right if you notice it says in Hebrews chapter 2 verse uh Hebrews 11:2 it says this for by it the men of old gained approval men of old gained approval so that means a Biblical Faith gains God’s approval now this is really the kind of faith that the Ancients had that enabled them to endure through all kinds of difficult situations right to the end of their life to live in this particular manner assumes that one is living with the knowledge that they know how to gain approval from God in whom they serve it’s not a shot in the dark it’s not hoping you hit the target it’s not a Whimsical Faith No here are people who knew whom they were worshiping and knew how to please the one they were worshiping what satisfaction there is to know that God is pleased with you and we all want to live there that is a very secure place to live in your circumstances you are not living to gain human approval but you are Discerning the activity of the invisible God in your present situation whether in adversity or Prosperity you desire to do the will of God and to receive Divine approval in fact if you look down at verse number five and six you see right there in Hebrews it tells us by faith Enoch was taken up so that he would not see death and he was not found because God took him up verse number took him up it says for he obtained the witness that before his being taken up he was pleasing to God verse six and here it is why was he pleasing to God why was he pleasing to God because he had faith in God verse number six and without faith it’s impossible to please God for he who comes to God must believe that he is and that he is a rewarder of those who seek him now I I observed along the way that when you sometimes witness to people they have a hundred questions about the Bible what about this and what about that and what about Evolution and what about the age of the Earth and what about this and what about and they go on and on and on and you know why you can answer all their questions and they still have another 101 question right well you know what they will never come to know the truth because all they’ll never run out of questions see faith is I believe what God says about even salvation how to be made right with God I believe that and in believing that I am believing in who God is in his character in in the essence of his nature and also I am believing too that he is a rewarder of those who do seek for him who do desire to have him pleased with them so you see that biblical faith is not a blind leap in the dark it is immersed in the nature and character of God in objective truth in the historical reality of the word of God that the people of God actually lived and died by faith all you have to do is look at he uh Hebrews 11:1 17 says by faith Abraham by faith verse by faith Isaac verse 22 by faith Joseph verse 23 by faith Moses 31 by faith Rahab I mean the whole chapter is how did they please God they pleased God by having faith but it also tells us then here in Scripture that some of the things that they sought after they didn’t receive but they had them by faith see they will receive it but not yet so it’s our turn it’s our turn on Earth to endure by faith to believe the Unseen to trust God’s promises to wait and hope expectantly that our great God and savior will bring all he has promised to an ultimate fulfillment so the essence of biblical faith is that it is a faith which rests entirely on the character of God and then there is a third thing about the essence of a Biblical faith is this a Biblical Faith recognizes God’s power it recognizes and it leans upon God’s power if you notice in verse number three of Hebrews 11 it says by faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible now a Biblical faith has a spiritual perception that the Universe can be seen actually every day we walk outside every time we look at the evening Sky what do we see out there we see the stars we see the planets we see everything and we they’re visible we can see them with our eyes but we don’t know the source initially of the universe in this sense a Biblical faith has a spiritual profession perception that the Universe can be seen but its Origins cannot be seen the believer knows that the origin of the universe is God himself all right but the point in scripture is that it is really the power of God that put the universe there because when God spoke he spoke creation into existence it happened right it took place we see the results so a Believer someone who’s growing in their faith really has a faith also in the power of God the sense of The Passage would claim that God’s word is an invisible power that pres produces visible results just like when you share the gospel with somebody and you know they’re they’re dead in their sin they’re they’re living a life of Darkness they’re uh they love their sin and you bring the gospel to them and all of a sudden they believe the gospel and their whole life is changed what how did that take place it wasn’t your skill in articulating the gospel even though you should have at least the points of the Gospel to be able to do that it was the power of God’s word the Unseen power of God’s word that produce results see that’s what we that’s what a Biblical faith is that we go outside and we see the universe and we realize that we also know the source of how the universe came into being and that is God himself amen see that is the faith that we have faith that is based on the character of God the Living God the invisible God The God Who Cannot Lie the scriptures speak of the formation of the universe at God’s command it was formed by the word of God and came into being by what cannot be seen and what cannot be seen the source of how how it happened in other words God can’t be seen seen But the results of the power of His word can be seen see so now that means these three things are part of the essence of a Biblical Faith the kind of faith that I and you should be growing in every single day of Our Lives to the point where we actually have such deep convictions about these things that nobody nobody can cause us to doubt see that’s the kind of people we ought to be we we really believe these things we don’t flounder in them so then the second characteristic of an authentic disciple is an uncompromising faith in God which flows right out to the third one and here’s the third characteristic of authentic disciples an uncommon desire to pray to the Lord an uncommon desire to pray to the Lord now if you take your Bibles and can turn back to the gospel of Mark again we’re looking at Mark 11 and of course if you want all the details around the mark passages you’re going to have to go back and listen to those sermons right but I’m not I’m not staying there I’m going actually outside of Mark to substantiate some of the things about what what Jesus was saying to his disciples to to know that it is a faith that that transcends the gospels into all the disciples lives and those who wrote scripture so this third characteristic of authentic disciples is an uncommon desire to pray unto the Lord if you notice in Mark 11 and verse 24 it says therefore I say to you all things for which you pray and ask believe that you have received them and they will be granted to you so the disciples action of faith is prayer in fact faith and prayer are very closely linked it’s all almost like hand and glove you can’t have one without the other see an increasing faith will cause me to what pray to the one I have faith in see that’s what it does so there’s a necessary characteristic here of a disciple a disciple Bears the necessary characteristic of prayer and also a disciple Bears the necess necessary characteristic of forgiveness while they when they pray if you notice in verse number 25 it says whenever you stand praying forgive if any of you have anything against anyone so that your father who is in heaven will also forgive you your transgressions and if you do not forgive neither will your father who is in heaven forgive your transgression so we see that this prayer and then the disciples attitude of of having a forgiving attitude that’s linked with actual prayer that God hears so not to have a forgiving attitude in your heart when you pray is almost like saying I don’t believe God I’m not going to be forgiving to this person so God doesn’t listen hear your prayer so see forgiving power cannot flow into our lives if we refuse to forgive others you ought to forgive because God has forgiven us that that is the very Foundation of why we forgive anybody that would do anything against us no matter how severe it may be it there must be this characteristic of forgiving now imagine that some King were to give you a card with his personal phone number on it and say dear friend you know that I love you you know that I care for you if I can ever be of help don’t hesitate to call I will see that the call is put right through and of course whatever I can do to meet your need I will what do you think you would do with a card that was given to you by a king you think you would throw it away if he gave you that promise with it no hardly you wouldn’t do that you would treasure it as something wonderful well we do have such a card in the sense given to us from God not only in in the scripture itself but in Jeremiah he tells his people call unto me and I will answer you and will tell you Great and Mighty things which you do do not know but how does it start it starts with the call Christians are to call unto the Living God and he says I will answer you so God is available you’re not going to get a busy signal there’s no answering machines you will never hear from God that he will not answer you he will and thank God that we Christians have a savior who can hear all our prayers understand every one of them and is compassionate and eager to actually hear them and answer them what a privilege that is but it is a privilege that I have observed uh in my own life and in the life of Believers that we take far too lightly and we take for granted of it and sometimes we even seldom use it our prayers are filled with generalities and not specifics our prayers are not impossible prayers that only God can do they’re very safe prayers and uh and yet God wants us to pray unsafe prayers he wants us to pray things that are impossible and he also wants us to know that prayer has always been important to God from the beginning of the Bible to the end of Revelation you see examples of Prayer in fact if you were to follow Jesus Jesus around you would find that he prays all the time for example Luke records this uh this procedure of prayer where in Luke 5 he prayed for more healing the next day in Luke 6 he had a major decision to pick disciples and the Bible says he prayed all all night for his disciples in Luke 9 he prayed for food to be multiplied in in Luke 928 he prayed earnestly right before facing the cross where the Bible even records in Luke that he sweat great drops of blood while he was praying and then in in Luke 11 uh chapter 11 verse number one he just prayed on a normal day he prayed for just regular things so see prayer is important to the Lord when we come to the Apostle Paul is prayer important for him well Paul wrote to the Thessalonian Christians and admonish them in the context of not quenching the holy spirit of God he said this in Thessalonians 516 to1 18 it says Rejoice always pray without ceasing in everything give thanks for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus so pray without interruption pray unceasingly pray consistently the word used means to continually or repeatedly do that activity and so what is the essence of prayer well remember by Essence I mean that which makes something What It Is by Essence I mean the fundamental nature of the thing or the essential quality of the thing and of course what is the essential quality of Prayer in this passage in Thessalonians that prayer is to be done all the time now how can someone pray continually that would be the question right is the Lord asking us to do something that is in reality impossible well I know from the word of God that if the Lord commands us to do something then it is possible to put into practice all the time it was uh the commentator RC lensy who said ceaselessly does not mean that our regular custom of praying in the morning the evening meals in church is not to be broken it means that we are always to be fit and ready for an approach to God in worshipful praying the heart which is ever attuned to God as being the his child that turns to God on a continual basis to lay their prayers before them so regular and continual prayer shows where one’s priorities are where one’s concerns are where one’s passions are it implores us really to remember prayer is always first and should always be regular all the time and so what is prayer in its basic nature well prayer is converse with God it’s communication of our soul with God it’s not in contemplation necessarily or meditation but it is in a direct address I am coming to the go and whom I know and I am coming to him with certain requests I’m coming him to him to adore him I am coming to him to confess sin I am coming to him to be thankful about all the things that he’s provided in my life and I am also coming to him to pray for others to supplications I I want to pray for my own needs and I want to pray for the needs of others because each one of us needs each other’s prayer prayer may be oral it may may be mental it may be occasional sometimes constant it may be a sudden crying out or a formal or a planned prayer there’s many different types of prayers recorded in scripture but prayer does pre suppose a belief in the personality of God in his ability and willingness to hold communication with us his personal control of all things is also in my mind when I am praying and all his creatures and all his all the actions of his creatures are known to God so not not many would deny the the that prayer is important if I asked any one of you at any one time you think the prayer is important you would all say to me yes of course it’s important that’s something all Christians ought to do but practically many are atheists when it comes to prayer we think we should do it but we don’t seek God’s face on normal days about everyday things to ponder such really a short and direct imperative like Paul gives us here pray without ceasing then we also have to consider some uh other observations that may come to mind concerning this particular practice and these are some of the things that uh when we think about about prayer without ceasing we must get out get out of our minds the wrong Notions concerning prayer that prayer is not always audible or in uh words that be could be heard it’s not always with a certain posture it’s not always at a particular time it’s not always in a particular place now is prayer more acceptable and proper because it is done at a particular time and place or in a certain posture or with the use of the voice I’d say no and here is an area that distinguishes true Christianity and True Discipleship from all other so-called religions that scripture is easy excuse me scripture is actually Abol abolishing the Conformity when it comes to communing with the true and living God see it it it is easy for someone to conclude that if I do not pray with my voice or in a certain posture or at a particular time and place then I did not pray see this is the kind of thinking that actually undermines the essence of prayer that if prayer is to be done without ceasing then many of the times you and I pray sometimes when we don’t speak words right we’re praying in our mind to God but we know who we’re praying too we know why we’re praying we know that he hears us when we pray if we come to him in the right manner we know that as his children so therefore I don’t have to have this structure of when and how to pray even though public prayers are important the Gathering of God’s people in prayer are all important we should all be practicing them but they not none of those constitute the essence of Prayer that it to be done without ceasing we also must stay away from the think thinking about prayer in a superstitious fashion like prayer is like rubbing a Genie’s lantern that is you know whatever I ask God he’s going to give me whatever I ask him in the sense uh that if it’s not within the will of God that prayer may be withheld from you because we’re act asking out of selfishness out of wrong motive and not out of the correct motive so the prayer call for here in Thessalonians is not so much the articulation of words as the posture of the heart there it is right there it’s the posture of the heart a continual prayer that is going on in my heart to God all day long and it was interesting that Thomas Kelly explained this particular thing that goes goes on and and he said this there’s a way of ordering our mental life on more than one level at one time on one level we can be thinking discussing seeing calculating mean all meeting all the demands of external Affairs but deep within behind the scenes at a profounder level we also may be in prayer and adoration and song and worship and a gentle repetitive of divine breathings I found myself in this particular State often where no matter what’s going on around me uh I’m in a kind of secret prayer to the Lord that no one I’m not verbalizing but I am in contact with God about events that are going on without getting on my knees without you know raising my hands without using my voice and see this is the essence of of a a disciple a disciple is is someone who has faith in God and he also has this now desire to want to commune with God on a regular basis so here’s the bottom line the essence of this kind of prayer we are had have a continuous inner channel of communication with God that’s what it is praying in this manner shows how dependent you are on the Lord to get along in your daily life I need God I need the Lord every day of my life prayer is worship to the Lord which he deserves so there’s an endless amount of people to pray for our prayer lists sometimes could be very long because it seems like we always have something to pray about continual prayer is God’s will for every Christian no exception matter of fact that’s what it says in our passage it says to pray without ceasing this is the will of God this is what ought to be taking place in your heart in your life so if we do have a this kind of thing going on as a Believer then it’s going to have very little room for worry it’s going to have very little room for anxiety about life you won’t be running to the medicine cabinet for certain prescriptions to help you through the day you will be communing with God and he will enable you to make it through the day too much prescription drugs today that even Christians are taking to get through life that does undermine God’s power that does undermine what God is doing in your life it may even shortcut maturity in discipleship I don’t know but all I know is that it seems like there’s no trust there for God now I’m not saying that all medication is wrong or that it shouldn’t be taken from time to time that’s God’s grace too given those things to us but I know this is that when it comes to continual prayer I can do it you can do it if you’re a busy person you can do it a student can do it young young parents should do it we all should do it all can do it and all ought to do it if you a disciple of Jesus Christ so true prayer is really a heart language that’s what it is whatever we seek with true hearts he is found by us see God made Heaven and Earth that means every place is hollow ground Jonah cried out from the belly of a great fish and the Lord heard him and the great fish spewed him out to Safe land so there are certain specifics about prayer and the first specific is this prayer is to be sincere prayer is to be sincere A sincerity first about Sin it was the psalmist who said this I cried to him with my mouth and he he was EXT and he was extolled with my tongue and then it says if I regard wickedness in my heart the Lord will not hear but certain God has heard he has given heed to the voice of my prayer blessed be God who has not turned away from my prayer nor his loving kindness from me so in other words there is a faith in God’s character that Faith brings along within an understanding of who God is and how he responds to me and it causes me to now approach the Lord with knowledge of who he is and then when I approach him I approach him too to remove the hindrances in my life and many of the hindrances in in our lives come because of sin right so I confess my sin if I regard that sin in my heart and don’t want to confess it it says the Lord will not hear me it’s not that he doesn’t hear it’s that those are the things that prevent God from answering our prayers also prayers should be sincere in our motive it says also in Jeremiah 29 then you will call upon me and come and pray to me and I will listen to you you will seek me and find me when you search for me with all your heart there it is that sense of the whole heart engaged in in seeking after God so there’s a motive in prayer are you really seeking after God and of course God rejects insincere prayer where it says in Hosea and they do not cry to me from their heart when they whail on their beds for the sake of grain and new wine they assemble themselves they turn away from me so they get to the point where they’re so far away from God they just moan on their beds and and moaning on their beds they pray for anything else but turning to God repenting of sin and calling upon him and of course Christ commended Nathaniel when when Nathaniel came to Christ for having sincerity for the Lord said to Nathaniel behold an Israelite indeed with whom is no guile neither in other words he was he saw him under praying under the tree and he saw no insincerity in Nathaniel in other words Nathaniel was seeking for God and God saw that sincerity and and of course did he come he was called by the Lord so see prayer is to be sincere secondly prayer is to be affectionate affections and passions are engaged in prayer when we read the Psalms uh it’s like Psalm 84:2 my soul longed and yearned for the courts of God see that’s an affection for God a love for wanting to have communion with God because Christ is the only thing that really satisfies the soul James calls it this an effectual prayer of the righteous man accomplishes much all right Elijah was a man with a nature like ours and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months and he prayed again and the sky poured rain and the Earth produced fruit but that was a a Earnest prayer it was a prayer that had his affections connected to it and of course those kind of prayers are effective they produce results and then of course prayer is also a pouring out of the heart prayer is an opening of the heart to God God looks at the heart and that is where prayer comes from it doesn’t just come from the mind in the sense these are logical things that I’m placing before the Lord these are coming with a faith and in trust in God and they also come with a desire to want God to connect with you and listen to your prayer so it says in Psalm 62 trust in him at all times oh people pour out your heart before him God is is Refuge a refuge for us so the soul that prays really sees the emptiness in all things under Heaven that in God alone there’s to be found rest and satisfaction for the soul truly these prayers mentioned here reveal an emptying of self and a filling of God well let me just close with this there are some conditions in prayer when we pray all right that God has established actually his own conditions concerning what when we do pray that we ought to make sure conditions are met what’s the first condition the first condition when uh considering prayer we must ask right James tells us you lust you do not have you commit murder you are envious and cannot obtain you fight and crawl you do not have because you do not ask well that’s a simple one isn’t it why don’t you have answers to your prayer well you didn’t ask God one reason we don’t have things we pray for is because we never pray for them that’s simple second condition is when considering prayer remove unbelief remove unbelief prayer is sometimes not answered because of unbelief in fact the passage I read in mark 11:24 therefore I say to you all things for which you pray and ask believe believe that you have received them see there must be belief in our prayers third condition when considering prayer make sure it’s not half-hearted we talk about a heartfelt prayer many prayers are not answered because they are prayed half-heartedly our prayers are to be fervent it was Paul who wrote in Romans I urge you Brethren by our lord Jesus Jesus Christ and by the love of the spirit to strive together with me in your prayers to God for me so there’s this this whole striving and wholeheartedness that goes into our prayers the fourth condition when considering prayer make sure you’re really forgiving others I mentioned that when I started out so prayers are not answered because sometimes we have unforgiving Spirits again in Mark 11:25 whenever you are whenever you stand praying forgive if you have anything against anyone so that your father who is in heaven will forgive you your transgressions right that’s pretty clear the Bible specifies if you have animosity against anyone you need to forgive them or else forget about praying a fifth condition when considering prayer Pray to glorify God pray to glorify God prayer is not answered when we don’t pray with God’s glory in mind we always want God to be manifested and exalted in our life and so that’s part of our prayer like it says in uh Matthew 6 where he says and when you are praying do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do for they suppose that they will be heard by their many words pray then it says in this way Our Father who art in heaven Hallowed be thy name thy kingdom come thy will be done on Earth as it is heaven give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors and do not lead us into temptation but Deliver Us from Evil for yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever so even in that prayer we we have the sense that prayer is to be the result of that is to bring glory to God the sixth condition is when considering prayer don’t give up Don’t Stop praying our prayers may not be answered because they’re not consistent they’re not persistent be persistent in your prayers and just like it says in Luke where it gives the story of one who came to a man at night and he ran out of provision somebody visited him and he went to the man he says no listen my doors are shut my lights are off I’m in bed my family is in bed I’m not giving it to you I’m not giving you the provisions and then it says this I will tell you that even though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend yet because he of his persistence he will get up and give him as much as he needs so I say to you ask and it will be given you seek and you will find knock and it will be open to you whoever or everyone who asks receives and who seeks finds and him to him who knocks it will be open see be persistent in your prayers don’t give up don’t say it doesn’t work I tried that and then the last condition when considering prayer Pray in jesus’ name if you’re going to be praying you do not have access to the father unless you have received Jesus Christ as your lord and savior so the reason your prayers are not answered could be that you’re not a Believer John 16 tells us therefore you too have grief now but I will see you again and your heart will rejoice and no one will take your joy away from you in that day you will not question me about anything truly truly I say to you if you ask ask the father anything in my name he will give it to you until now you have asked for nothing in my name and you will receive so that your joy may be full so it in other words it does matter whether God whether or not God is your father remember before you became a Christian your father was the devil yes if the devil’s your father go ask him apart from the family of God when you’re a part of the family God you can enter into the family as you repent of your sins and receive Jesus Christ as your lord and savior if you’ve done that then you are you are on praying ground if you haven’t done that the first prayer that you should pray is pray to receive Jesus as your lord and savior so the Holy Spirit must reveal to a sinner that they’re sinful and in a stateful sin condition before God and so when that person senses their conviction of their sins and they run to Jesus Christ for mercy and salvation they confess their sin to him then they are placed in a now they’re placed in a place of of Grace which God can exercise only through his son they flee from the curse of the law and now they’re on praying ground now they can pray as they meet the conditions for prayer so if you’re part of God’s family I urge you to become men and women and boys and girls of faith in prayer learn to walk in the spirit to lift up your hearts continually To God In Prayer all day long practice the presence of God by practicing prayer so if you’re meeting the condition I conditions which enable you to pray then pray I pray that the Lord would grant that to us to make us people of real genuine prayer and that he would answer us and we would pray and tell of his of the great things that he showed to us and things we did not know but because of our growth in Christ now we do know so those are the kind of things things that God wants in the disciple the first would be the unconditional surrendering to God’s will the second characteristic and uncompromising faith in God and the third an uncommon desire to pray to the true and living God so I pray that you would see these characteristics emerging in your daily exp experience as you follow Christ as a disciple they they must be there they must be there let’s pray Lord thank you again for the word of God I pray Lord that you would continually impress Upon Our Minds the important aspects revealed in scripture about your character so Lord our faith would grow and our prayer life would become more regular and intense and Earnest that we would actually be people who experience a life that knows what continual prayer is that we are in communion with you Lord all day long from the day morning we get up to when we our heads hit the pillow I pray that would be a characteristic in our life that would become more evident and more persistent and more regular than ever before so Lord enable us to to see these things in ourselves and others and I pray in doing so you would make healthy strong disciples that know how to live for you in Christ’s name amen