I want you to turn now to 1 Timothy,
chapter 2. Sunday, I would be preaching
on this subject, subject to prayer. I did that without considering
the next few verses in 1 Timothy, and providentially, the very
next verse. Really, I didn't even look down
at the other verses, consider them, but had read a sermon man
J.C. Ryle on the subject of prayer,
and it so impressed me and blessed me that I thought it would use,
so I announced that I would be preaching on it. I began looking
at 1 Timothy 2, look at verse 8, I will therefore, now this
is where we left off, Sunday, and he picks up in verse 8, I
will therefore that men pray everywhere. That's how the Lord
works, and I like things like that. That's a sign to me. That's spirit bearing witness
with my spirit that perhaps this message is from the Lord. I know
I need this. It helped me tremendously. And the thing that I want to
impress upon all of us by this message, the thing I want to
impress upon us is our Need to pray. The importance of prayer
or need to pray. And if I would ask each one of
you, if you pray, you would hang your head in shame. Because you don't you consider
the amount of time you spend in prayer, nothing. And if as
a result of this message, we're all urged to pray, then it will
be a success. Our text says, men ought to pray,
I will therefore that men pray everywhere. You could read that
two ways. You could read that, I will therefore
that men everywhere pray, which Paul was talking about all men
there. I will therefore that all men everywhere pray. But
also you could read that, like I said, I will therefore that
men pray everywhere, everywhere they are, in all circumstances. in all places. Everybody ought
to pray, call on God, and all ought to pray everywhere, always.
I was struck with how many verses of Scripture, I went through
the Bible, and I was struck with how many verses of Scripture
exhort us to pray. Now, John, isn't that a shame?
Isn't it a shame that God Almighty Our heavenly father. Has to exhort
us to talk to him. But you know that kind of rings
familiar than our children. Son talk to me. Talk to me in
that way we approach our children just talk to me. That's shame in the Lord has
to ignore this knowledge of this. Listen our Lord said in Luke
eighteen one remember you gave those three parables of the importunate
widow and so forth. He said, men ought to pray. The Lord gave this parable, the
parable of the importunate widow, to this end, that men ought to
pray. They ought to pray, ought to call on God. 1 Thessalonians 5, Rejoice evermore,
pray without ceasing. Pray without ceasing, don't stop. 1 Thessalonians 5, 18, everything
give thanks, this is the will of God concerning you. Ephesians
5, giving thanks always for all things. Philippians 4, in everything
by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your request
be made known unto God. Colossians 4, continue in prayer
and watch with thanksgiving with all praying for us. Romans fifteen, I beseech you,
brethren, strive together with me in your prayer. Second Timothy
four, watch and pray thou in all things. First Peter four,
watch unto prayer. Jude twenty, building up yourselves
in your most holy faith, praying in the spirit on and on and on
and on. Every single epistle. Many, many
more. Is this a necessary message,
or what? Why is prayer so important? Why is prayer so important? Well, like I told the children,
talking about obeying their parents, it's important, number one, because
God said, do it. Number one, whatever he said.
There are no idle words that come out of God's mouth. I don't want to use big words,
but this is a. Imminent. Our principal means
of grace. Prior, you talk about. The old
puritans used to talk about means of grace or ways to obtain grace. Ways to obtain grace, you saw
it there in James four, it said that he give us more grace. But
there is in the first word out of your mouth coming in steady
work. He says, I need grace. I said, Well, that's that's funny
that you say that because he giveth more grace. I was just
reading there. I asked there, I said, How do you get grace,
Terry? How do you get grace? Well, we just read it in James
five, four, you ask for it, right? You ask for it. He said in Hebrews
4, listen to this, you don't have to turn, I'll read it for
you to keep you from turning. He said in Hebrews 4, seeing
we have a great high priest, a great high priest who's passed
into the heavenlies, a man that God accepts, sitting at the right
hand of the Father. We don't have a high priest who
can't be touched with the feeling of our infirmities now. He's
not a big high pope who sits in a holy throne that's immune
from all sin and all that. He was touched in all points
like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly
to the throne of grace, to our high priest, asking him for grace.
I didn't read it off. Asking him for grace that we
may have to the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and
find grace. to help in time of need. How
much? How much health and are you in
need of God's grace? Oh, right. It says he gives more. How are you going to get? You
got to keep asking. Right. So prayer is this imminent
means of grace. And number three, prayer is a
vital connection with God Almighty. Did we read it there in James
four? Draw an eye to God. He'll draw an eye to you. How
do you do that? I've already told you that. In prayer. In
prayer. Right? We draw nigh to God. He
draws nigh to us. Now let me say this from the
outset. Let me clear up all misconceptions. Somebody nail that board down,
wouldn't you? Let me nail this down. All things work together, don't
they? Let me nail this down. I don't want there to be a squeak
in your understanding. Prayer is not a thing. Prayer is not a thing or an act. This is a superstitious belief
of our present generation. Prayer changes things. Just pray,
brethren. People think, Barnard used to
say, you see all these people joining hands, you know, just
sitting around in a circle praying, you know, and Barnard used to
say, what are they trying to do, gang up on God? The effectual prayer of a righteous
man. My dad brought this down. I'm
getting way if I don't get through this, you'll pardon me. We'll
take two or three parts to do this. It's going to take two
anyway. My dad, he said, what? And we
used to do, I remember doing this growing up at 13th Street
until we, until the Lord gave some wisdom. that everybody get
around it by praying here one one man pray. And he goes next
he pray. And we all say much the same
thing goes next when he pray and then on around the room they
pray and all that. Now that's fine I suppose if you can really
do that. If each man can really blot out
the other man the other man and do that without entering into
a spirit of competitive prayer. But I've been in on that. And
maybe at times the Lord does give a spirit of prayer to different
ones, but I find myself maybe trying to outdo the other one.
But wait till you hear this. You know that sort of thing.
That's so ungodly and so wicked. And he brought this point out.
If the Lord blesses one man, if the Lord lays his spirit upon
one man to pour out his heart in prayer to God Almighty and
gives him a spirit of prayer, what does anybody else need to
speak up for? Isn't that the sense of a high priest? You've
got one. All the priests didn't get around together and start
praying together. And he brought this simple illustration out.
I didn't mean to get on this at all, but it's needful. He brought this simple illustration
out. Say, Stan, you and Joe and Henry and me and one, tell me
something. What are you all going to do?
You're all going to come in and study, and all of you at once, you're going
to just start talking to me, all at once. Everybody at the same
time. Oh, what about the stand tells me what you want to do
the same thing and then John says same thing and then Charles
is saying. You see how ridiculous it might
say. They said to Moses you go and speak to God for us and it
won't. That was that was the the gist
of our message on Sunday when we have one mediator between
God and the man. We don't go to I don't go to
thank this thing that I don't want. It all. But prayer is not and that's
what I'm trying to try to bring out these this superstition and
all the notions of silly notions that men have about prayer. And
that's one of God's not the author of confusion. But prayer is not
a thing, prayer is not an act, prayer is not ganging up on God,
prayer is an attitude. Prayer is a state of the heart,
a state of the mind. I said this before, prayer is
not a rabbit's foot. Prayer is not a rabbit's foot. You know, if all else fails,
I've got my little rabbit's foot, I'll pray. But prayer is simply
calling on the Lord who is our strength. It's not the act of
prayer. Prayer doesn't change things.
Prayer doesn't do anything. What is my little measly words
going to do to the will and eternal purpose and decrees of God Almighty,
huh? Am I going to stop heaven? Come on. Come on. Prayer is simply the
pouring out of a sinner's heart to God to help. Somebody said,
just a beggar calling upon the King. That's all it is. You say,
well, didn't one person call and then the Lord of glory stopped?
Yeah, but he... Well, I'm getting ahead of myself.
Let me go on. Much of what I'm going to say
tonight has come from J.C. Ryle, that message that I told
you about. Let me give you some vital points. on prayer, OK? And like I said, this is going
to take two parts. We've got too much. Number one, if you're taking
notes, here's some vital points. Vital points on this thing of
prayer. Number one, prayer is absolutely
needful to salvation. Now, I'm really going to stop
some some people here and make you start thinking. We're saved
by grace. The scripture says we're saved
by grace, and that's how we're saved. God chooses a people. God foreknew, foreloved, forechose,
foreordained a people. When he did foreknow, he did
predestinate, predetermine who they're going to be. When he
did predestinate, he called. When he called, he justified.
When he justified, he glorified. Salvation is all totally of the
Lord, one hundred percent by his grace. God chooses us. God loves us. God calls us. God saves us. God sent his son
down here to do the work and carries it all the way through.
That's salvation by grace. And I've already said, he uses
means, means of grace, of obtaining
this grace, one of which is prayer or simply calling on God. Ain't nobody, and I meant to
use that, ain't nobody going to be saved that doesn't call
on the name of the Lord. Right? And that doesn't mean
a one-time thing. It doesn't mean that I made my
little decision, you know, I went down the aisle into the morning. That's what the world calls salvation.
No, it's to whom coming. Continually calling. I thank
God that he has delivered me from so great a death, and doth
deliver me, and will yet deliver me. And I thank God he calls
me to call on him in the first place. I called on him when he
first called on me. I called on him in the first
place, and I'm calling on him now. And by God's grace, I'm
going to keep calling on him until I'm standing right in front
of his presence, looking him eye to eye. And I don't have
to use prayer anymore. I can talk to him face to face. And nobody will be saved without
prayer. Just like a child, every human
being that's born is alive. How do you know it's alive? It
breathes, it cries. That's what the doctor, the first
thing the doctor wants to know is if that baby's alive, and
how do they know that? They don't put a stethoscope
on it, they whack it, and it cries. And it gets the oxygen
flowing and all It does healthy things to cry. A little bit of
pain causes a cry, and it works fruit. Boy, I'd go on and on
there, couldn't I? Ezekiel thirty-six, you remember
that portion of scripture that said, God keeps saying, I will,
I will, I will, I will. I forget how many times he said
that in Ezekiel thirty-six. You remember that? I will. God says, I will do this. I will
do this for them. I'll do that. I'll do this. I'll
do that. I'll do this for them. And then on down to the end of
the chapter, it says, And I'll yet be inquired of them for this
thing. I'm going to do it, but they're going to ask me to do
it. Their sovereignty and responsibility is clear as you'll see it anywhere
in the Scripture. There's more on sovereignty in that passage
than there's on responsibility. Nevertheless, they're both together.
And they're not enemies. They go together. See, I can't
explain that. I can't either. Quit trying. Just believe it. All I know is I would not have
called on God had he not called on me first. But I did call. And I am calling. And I will
yet call. If he keeps calling me. Number
two, prayer is a sure mark of true conversion. Like I just
said, I've already answered that one. Prayer is a sure mark of
true conversion. It's like breathing, the act
of breathing. It's natural to true spiritual life. Now, I don't
mean that everybody pretends to pray saved, but you cannot
be saved without it. Nor is anyone truly saved who
does not continue it. It's not an act. It's not a way of life. It's not their breath. Nothing so neglected quite as
neglected as private prayer. Nothing so nearly neglected as
private prayer. I think it's a terrible shame
that we pay a man to do most of our praying for. That's not
the way it is. We're all sons of God. We're
all kings and priests before God. You know, people all the time
say pray for me, and I think, well, I will, but I sure hope
you pray for yourself. I hope you prayed for yourself
ten times before you came to ask me to pray for you. And I
hope you're praying for me as well. You know, like little children,
this is an area we need much more learning and experience
in, isn't it? Number four, prayer. Now listen to this, all right? Come on now, don't leave me.
It's good stuff, it's meat though, I'll chew on this a while. Prayer
is a secret, and these are the words of J.C. Ryle in his old
puritanical language. Prayer is a secret of imminent
holiness, or the word imminent means noted. Someone is imminent,
they're noted for it. Holiness. Now, when they use
the term holiness, when the scriptures talk about holiness, don't let
that bother you. OK? What that means is Christ-likeness. All right? Nothing more. Nothing
less. Holiness, you know, that doesn't
mean our acceptance with God. It means Christ-likeness. Be
ye holy, for I am holy. All right? Prayer is a means,
an imminent... is the secret of imminent holiness
or Christ's likeness. Some of the Lord's people seem
to never be able to get on. In other words, he means make
progress. Some of the Lord's people never
seem to be able to make progress from the time of their conversion.
They're born again, but they remain babies all their lives.
They're learners in Christ's school, but they never seem to
get beyond A-B-C in the lowest form. They've got inside the
fold, but there they lie down and they get no further. Year
after year you see them in the same old besetting sins. You
hear from them the same old experience. You remark in them the same want
or lack of spiritual appetite, the same squeamishness, or that
is, get upset about anything, the same dislike for strong meat
in the Word of God, the same childishness, the same feebleness,
the same littleness of mind, the same narrowness of heart,
the same lack of interest in anything beyond their own little
this and that and the other. Then there are others of the
Lord's people who seem to always be making problems. They grow
like the grass after rain. They increase like Israel and
Egypt. They are ever adding strength
to strength, faith to faith. Every time you meet them, their
hearts seem to be larger, their spiritual stature seems to be
bigger, taller and stronger. Every year they appear to see
more, know more, believe more, feel more in their religion.
They not only have good works to prove their faith, but they
are zealous about them. But all this time, they think
themselves unprofitable servants and fancy they do nothing at
all. But these people make religion lovely and beautiful in your
eyes. These are those whom it does
one good to see, to be with, to hear. When you meet them,
you could believe that they were like Moses that had just come
out from the presence of God. When you part with them, you
feel warmed by their company as if your soul had been near
a fire. I know people like that. I really do. I know people whom I think the
world is not worthy of these men. People like that that I
feel like I don't, I can't tie this man's shoelaces or want. How can we account for the difference
between these two types of people? What is the reason some believers
are so much brighter, and he uses the term holier, more Christ-like
than others? He says, I believe the difference
in nineteen out of twenty cases arises from habits and private
prayer. I believe those who are not imminently
like Christ pray little, and those who are very much like
Christ pray much. And that's in the scriptures.
You talk about Moses. You want to read about Moses?
You'll catch him every time he turns around, calling on God.
How about David? We talked about that tonight. You just ee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee-mee It's what I'm saying, not so.
In a prayer. Elijah was a man of like passions,
like we just read that, and he prayed and the rain stopped.
Christ said, if you had that much faith, faith of the mustard
seed, you could say, that mountain's in my way. Go over there in Smith
Mountain Lake. Am I exaggerating the point?
If it was needful, if it was for the glory of God, furtherance
of the gospel, the good of people, my spiritual welfare, it could
be done. God's the same, our needs are
the same, and those men were no different than we are. Prayer
is a means of grace, an imminent means, Christ-like. Number five,
neglect of prayer. is the greatest cause of spiritual
decline and moral failure. I repeat that. Neglect of prayer
is the greatest cause of spiritual decline and moral failure. You know it's so, don't you? You know it's so. Why does the Lord hide his face
from us? We're not seeking his face. Right? Come on. Listen to this. Neglect of prayer
is the greatest cause of spiritual decline and moral failure. Bibles
read without prayer. How many times? Sermons heard
without prayer. How many wasted? Marriages contracted
without prayer. How many fail? Journeys taken
without prayer. no avail, decisions made without
prayer. On and on the list goes, right?
Riles says it causes lingering lots, wife idolizing Solomons,
over-careful Marthas. He said this, he said, Be sure
men fall in private before they fall in public. Peter, he used
the example of Peter. Peter neglected our Lord's warning
to him, didn't and the rest of Peter, and he said to the rest
of the Apple watch now in prayer. Watch and pray. Here it is with
us. Watch and pray. Peter didn't. Peter failed. Peter didn't. And when the hour of temptation
came, he failed. Christ told him, one hour. What? Could you not watch with me one
hour? And watch, whenever you see watch
in the scriptures, it means pray. Prayer is the greatest neglect.
Neglect of prayer is the greatest cause of spiritual decline and
moral failure. Number six, prayer is one of
the best recipes for happiness and contentment. Prayer is one of the best recipes
for happiness and contentment. And I'll read something else
he wrote. Now, I couldn't improve upon
it. I started to put it in my own
words, but I couldn't improve upon it. Prayer is one of the
greatest means of happiness and contentment, a recipe. How are
we going to get through this valley of tears with the least
amount of pain? John, this place is a rough place,
by the way. This world is a rough place.
In this world, he said, you shall have tribulation. And it's not
a bed of roses. God never, as a psalmist, never
promised us a rose garden. He promised a thorn. How are we going to get through this
with the least amount of pain and crying? Ryle says, I know of no better
recipe than the habit of taking everything to God in prayer.
Everything. And what Peter said in Philippians
4? Everything. This is the plainest advice the
Bible gives, both Old Testament and New. What does the psalm
say? Call upon me in the day of trouble,
I'll deliver thee, and then you'll glorify me. Psalm 55, verse 22, "'Cast thy
burden upon the Lord, he shall sustain thee, he shall never
suffer the righteous to be moved.'" That's a psalm. You can go on
and on in the psalms. What about Paul's epistles? Well,
he says, "'Be careful for nothing,' or that means, don't be full
of anxious care about anything. Cast your care somewhere else.
Don't you bear it. Take it to the Lord.' and leave
it there. Be careful for nothing. Don't
be full of care of everything by prayer and supplication with
thanksgiving. Let your requests be made known
unto God and the peace of God which passes understanding. Boy, I want to know something
about that. Peace in my heart and contentment in my heart and
my life which passes understanding. People can't understand it. I'll
go on to explain that in a minute. shall keep your hearts and minds
through Christ Jesus. Thou wilt keep him in perfect
peace. How? Do the best you can, whose
mind is stayed on thee. Listen to this. What does James
say? Is any afflicted among you? Let him pray. Got a problem? Pray. That's what this whole message
is about, trying to exhort us just to pray. That's what the
disciples said, Lord teach us to pray. Do you need this? This was the
practice of all the saints down through history recorded in the
scripture. It's what Jacob did when he feared his brother Esau.
Oh, he was scared. Oh, Jacob was scared that one.
Scared for his life, and he saw what he was going to do. He wrestled
with the Lord in prayer all night. He said, I'm not going to let
you go until I get an answer. He got one. Boy, did he get one. He received double from the Lord
for all his sin and for all his foolishness. It's what Moses
did when the people were ready to stone him in the wilderness.
Oh, God help me. He did. Killed the people. It's what Joshua did when Israel
was about to be defeated. They weren't. It's what David did when he was
in danger all the time before Saul. It's what Hezekiah did
when he received that threatening letter from that king. Remember? They prayed all night,
and the Lord answered the prayer. And the sinner, once he was at
the door, said, It's Peter. He closed the door. I don't believe
this. I didn't believe it. He answered the prayer. He answers
prayer. It's what Paul did when he was
cast into the dungeon of Philippi, and the gates flew open. The only way to really be happy
in a world like this is to be ever casting all our cares upon
God. It's trying to carry our burdens
which makes a believer so sad. If we only tell all our troubles
to a God who is able to bear them. Listen to this, this is
a blessing. There is a friend. Scripture
says there is a friend who sticketh closer than a brother. Quite
often people call me, all the time call me, and I don't want
to discourage that necessarily, but don't call me before you
call on him. Don't ask my counsel before you
call on the counselor. OK, don't bring your burdens
to me until you first brought them to the Lord. Yeah, we're
to bear one another's burdens, but take it to the one who can
take it away. I can feel it. I can mourn with
you, but I can't do anything about it. All I want to do is
point you to the one who can. Right? There is a friend. waiting to help us. The scripture
says the Lord waits to be gracious. It does. If we'll only unbosom to him
our sorrow. A friend who pities the poor
and the sick and the sorrowful, he was a man of sorrow. He knows. A friend who knows the heart
of a man, he knows it. He lived as a man thirty-three
years. A man, a friend who can weep with the weepers, he is
a man of sorrow. He wept. You know, if you want somebody
to share in your sorrow, you ought to go to somebody who has
been the most sorrowful. Christ said, Behold and see my sorrow. See if there is anybody, nobody
sorrowed like I have. He knows. A friend who is able
to help us. No earthly pain, he could not
cure it. That friend is the Lord Jesus Christ. Friend of sinners. No sinner too great, he does
not heal. The way to be happy is to always be open in our hearts
to him. I'm reminded of that old black
preacher that every time, I forget his name, but every time that
somebody would ask him something, he'd say, Well, I've got to tell
the Lord about it. I must tell the Lord. Before
you give an answer. That's what I tell people when
they ask me. All the time they're asking me a question or whatever,
I'm, Lord, help. Lord, help. Can't always give
an immediate answer. Sometimes I do, and it's usually
wrong. Talk it over with the one who
has all the answers. Christ can make those happy who
trust Him and call on Him, whatever be their outward condition. He
can give peace to a heart even in prison. John Bunyan knew something
about that, didn't he? Oh, my soul, he wrote. That man
had peace, didn't he? In prison. He can give contentment
in the midst of poverty. Go down to Mexico and see them
smiling, singing the same songs we're singing, but they don't
know where their next meal is coming from. They're smiling. He can give joy on the brink
of the grave. Go to the dying bed of a true
believer. see if they're scared, see if
they're walking that lonesome valley by themselves, as the
song says. Now, Christ said, He said, Thou art with me. He
gave joy. There's a mighty fullness in
him for all his believing people, a fullness that he is ready to
pour out on everyone who will ask and pray. Fullness. Oh, that
men would understand happiness That happiness does not depend
on outward circumstances, but depends upon the God who controls
them. Calling on Christ, he talked
about prayer here, lightens crosses. Now, two more minutes. No matter how heavy they are,
calling on God lightens these crosses. It can bring down, bring
down one who will bear them for us. Prayer can open a door for
us when there seems no way. Prayer brings down the one who
says to us, this is the way, walk in it. Prayer lets in a
ray of hope when all earthly prospects seem to be darkened. Prayer can obtain relief for
us. Calling upon Christ obtains relief for us when those we love
most are taken away and the world feels empty. brings down the
one who can fill our hearts with himself and say to us, I'm with
thee, I'll never leave thee, don't forsake thee. You're never
going to hear that unless you call him. Never. He doesn't say
that. You don't find me. What does
the scripture say how you're going to find me? Come on. Seeking
me, you should find me. How? When you search for me,
how? with all your heart. And I'm
going to bring that out next week's study this thing of prayer
it's importunate prayer. I hear people all the time say
well I prayed about it. Have you now? Have you now? Unless you can say you wrestled
all night and you prayed about this thing for weeks on end you
haven't prayed about it. You know sometimes we use that
to justify what we want to say or do to somebody we say we mumble
our little words we do or we enter into a little prayer, just
so we can pacify our conscience as we've prayed about it, and
go on and do what we intended to do in the first place. I've
done it. I know what I'm talking about.
I'm not going into detail, but I have shamed myself before,
doing things that later on, and I said, well, I've prayed about
this. I didn't pray about it. I uttered a few words to pacify
my conscience, but I didn't pray about it. Later on, I regretted
what I did. If I had really prayed about
it, I wouldn't have done what I did. I'll go into that more next week,
Sunday night, when I'm going to take this back up again. Now,
here's a parting word to those who do not pray. There's not
one good reason that we can show for not praying. And I'm going to tell you next
week, next week or Sunday night, we're going to talk about what
true prayer is, the actual act of prayer, what it involves and
all that. But there's not one good reason anybody can show
for not praying. And I mean actually praying.
I know prayer is a state of mind, a state of heart, and it's not
getting down on your knees, and it's not a form and so forth
necessarily, but we'll go into that a little more deeply. It
does require some some diligence and this one. Actually is an
act but. Not one good reason why we can
show for living without prayers useful to say what I don't know
how to pray right. Prayer is a simple thing. I don't
know how to breathe. It's a simple it's as simple
as speaking to God right speaking to God. It doesn't take learning,
wisdom, book knowledge to begin it. It needs nothing but heart
and will. That's all it needs. The weakest infant can cry when
it's hungry, right? You don't have to teach a baby
to cry when it's hungry. It comes naturally. The poorest
beggar can hold out his hand. You don't have to teach him that,
see? But you've got to know what position,
what angle to hold your hand out in order to receive the money
at the proper interval. The most ignorant man in the
world will find something to say to God. Help. Thanks. Most common man on earth
can say thanks. It's useless for us to say we
don't know how to pray. Secondly, it's useless for us
to say we don't have a convenient place. That's what Paul said
in 1 Timothy 2, verse 8, didn't he? Man ought to pray everywhere.
You ought to be praying right now, Bible. Lord, teach me to
pray. Pray where you're singing. Pray
where you're showering. Singing in the shower. No convenient
place? Our Lord prayed on a mountain,
Peter prayed on a housetop, Isaac prayed in the field, Nathaniel
under the fig tree, John in the whale's belly. Men ought to pray everywhere.
Any place can become a closet, a Bethel, a rock as your pillow
to be in the presence of God. But it's useless to say you have
no time. There's plenty of time. Men will only employ it. Time
may be short, but time is always long enough for prayer. Daniel
had all the affairs of a kingdom on his hand, and he found time
to do them. David was ruler over a mighty
nation. He said, Evening and morning and at noon I'll pray.
When time is really wanted, time can always be found. We find
time to do what we want to do. Lastly, it's useless to say we
can't pray until we have more faith. Why are you praying anyway? What's
prayer all about, anyway? We're not trying to teach God
anything. We're not trying to impress God with anything. We're
asking God for everything. So we're thanking God principally,
thanking him. Ryle says, It's bad enough to
be unconverted and going to hell. It's worse to say, Well, I know
it, but I'm not going to cry for mercy. There's no warrant for that in
scripture. Scripture says, call on the Lord. Call on the Lord.
Call on the Lord. You'll be found. Seek ye the
Lord while ye may be found. Today, you'll hear his voice,
harden not your heart. Call on the Lord while ye may
be found. We can never blame God's sovereignty. for our want
and our discontent and our unhappiness and anything. You can never blame
God Almighty. You have not because you ask
not. That's what we read. And when
you ask, you ask amiss to consume it upon what you wanted in the
first place, not what God's going to give. Any afflicted among
you, let him pray. And men pray everywhere at all
times and everything. Pray everywhere. So you see the
what this was all about. Kind of a prelude. In getting in and talking about
the subject, but. If this message I started out
by saying if this message will exhort you just. It will have been worth it. Well,
we need it. I need it. Since I read that,
I thought, this is where I failed. One of the places I failed so
many others. But this is one great place.
I've been terribly faithful. God forbid that I should sin
against the Lord in ceasing to pray for my brethren. And we're
going to see how that is the most important kind of prayer
there is. Intercessory prayer. Prayer for one another. That's
when the blessings of the Lord pour out on you. All right, I hope you got something,
just a word, just a verse, just a something out of that, just
an exhortation, just an encouragement. Thirty-five minutes ain't bad.
Stand with me. I'll dismiss this in prayer. Lord, once again, we call upon
you, we ask you to help us. We feel so helpless, so very
helpless. We don't know how to pray. We
don't know how to sing. We don't know how to preach. We don't
know how to hear the preaching. We don't know how to sit. We don't know how to listen.
We can't watch for one hour. We're so helpless. This is why
we're praying. This is why we pray in everything,
about everything, always and everywhere. We must call. I must tell the Lord Jesus Christ. He's the only one that can help
me. Lord God, I beseech you on behalf of these people that you
would teach us to pray. Teach your people to call upon
you. Someone here tonight who has not truly called upon you in a saving way, in a saving
call, begging, asking, beseeching you to reveal yourself to them.
I pray that they might do that first. In all of us. May we continually
cry unto the Lord for mercy and grace to find help in time of
need. We always need more grace every
morning. Your mercies are new every morning.
May we call upon you. May we lie upon our bed thinking
of our God. May we wake up in the morning
thinking of our God. May we at the noonday think of
our God. Always and everywhere and everything.
think on things above. And in doing so, the peace of
God rule our minds and our hearts and our lives. Granted, dear
Lord, this is not a mystical thing and a thing too great for
any of us. The last we read, the last was
a man of like passions as we are, and he prayed. And dear
Lord, Paul, Job, Terry, Charles, Barbara, Deborah, Jeanette, all
these people, are men and women of like, just men and women,
weak, helpless. Enable them to call upon thee
to find help in time of need. We are so helpless, we need help.
Help, Lord, that godly man ceaseth, that faithful fail from among
the children of men, and don't let it be us. Hold us up by your
power. and make this thing of prayer
a means of grace that we use to seek your face and to find
that help. In Christ's name we pray, and
I ask that we are met together. Amen.