And before he knew it, this guy was pinned to the ground.
The bear had its paw on his chest and its other paw up ready to strike him.
And in that moment, this atheist just screamed out,
Oh, God, help me!
And then the bear was momentarily startled,
and the atheist sort of realized the inconsistency of calling out to God for help
after living a life that acknowledging God doesn't exist
and then calling him, he needs help.
And then so he throws out an ultimatum instead to God and says,
Well, in fact, I don't believe you exist, buddy.
In fact, I don't care if you do.
But if you do, then prove yourself that you're good and that you're powerful,
as people say you are, and make this bear a Christian.
He figured that that's a pretty smart move.
He can then, the bear won't kill him because the bear has to, you know,
turn the other cheek and look and not kill him.
And he'd be able to go on living on like he always has for the rest of his life,
not acknowledging God.
So he figured that was a bit of a stroke of brilliance there in just that moment.
And to his great surprise, in that very moment,
the bear pulled back and knelt down beside him,
took his paw off his chest and put his paws together
and bowed his head and started to pray.
And he prayed, Dear Father, for what I'm about to receive,
may the Lord make me truly thankful.
I don't think it's a true story.
I'm pretty convinced prayers don't pray,
but it's pretty much universal that people on our planet pray.
It doesn't matter who the person is.
You see them on the television.
I've even seen declared atheists in a moment of tragedy get on the TV
being interviewed about something, about some tragedy that's happened,
and they've said our thoughts and our prayers are with the family.
I mean, you hear that again, you hear it again and again and again.
Even devout atheists have said our thoughts and our prayers.
I'm not sure exactly what they mean by prayers at that point,
but that is the thing, is that prayer is virtually universal activity.
But what we mean by it, what the atheist means by it on that moment of the TV,
is very different than what I would mean by it.
Individual to individual, what we actually mean by prayer is very different.
And what is significant is that the difference between our prayers
is the difference between what we think about the being to whom we're praying to is,
what sort of being that is, what sort of God they are,
what we think about that God, and also what our relationship with that God
or that supreme being is.
You see, when the Buddhist spins his prayer wheel,
or when the Hindu sits in mystic silence,
or when the Muslim gets his prayer mat and faces Mecca five times a day and prays,
they are all reflecting in their own different ways
the character of the God or the gods to whom they're praying to,
and also the relationship and how they think the relationship works with that God.
So our prayer is shaped and defined by the being to whom we pray,
and that's no different for the Christian.
There are many Bible passages that shape the Christian prayer life.
For instance, Jeremiah 32, 17,
That verse shapes the way you pray.
It's talking about God being the creator of all things,
and nothing is too hard for Him.
That's a shaping prayer.
That's a verse that shapes our prayer, view of God.
Or our relationship with God.
For instance, the stunning picture of the Christian life
that's laid out before us in Romans chapter 8,
where it says,
We once were slaves to sin and death and fear.
We were hostile to God, unable to please Him at all.
We are now free sons of the Father,
co-heirs of His kingdom in Christ.
Through being united with Jesus,
who died to free us,
we now have this new life in which God Himself dwells with us,
in us, by His Spirit.
It's because of the saving work of Jesus
that we are raised up from our low position,
which is the position of being cut off from access to God,
and have been granted free access
to the almighty, true, living God,
creator and sustainer of all that is.
And so what that means for the Christian
is that prayer is not an appendix.
It's not an addition to the Christian life.
It's the heart of who we are as His children
and how we relate to Him and His Father.
In fact, I would go one step further.
I didn't say this this morning,
but I think you can think about it today.
I would suggest that prayer is one of the barometers,
if not the key barometer,
to indicate what your spiritual state is.
Prayer is the outworking of your relationship with God
in the same way that if I've got no communication
with my wife, Natalie,
that would be an indication of the state of our relationship.
Don't care whatever,
don't care how much money I spend on holidays
or whether I buy a clothes or anything like that.
It's how do I communicate with her
as a fair indication of what my relationship status is with her
in the same way it is with God.
And what we see as a Christian
is that prayer is a privilege.
To be able to go to the creator and sustainer of the universe
and to call Him Father.
And yet with all the privileges that prayer affords us,
I think the hard truth is that many of us
don't pray very much.
We pray at meals, possibly.
We whisper prayers before tough meetings.
We say something brief as we crawl into bed.
And I suspect that very few set aside times to pray alone
and even fewer think that it's worthy to meet with others to pray.
I would suggest that our lack of prayerlessness
is one of the reasons,
one of the chief reasons why our faith is weak,
our hope is feeble,
and our passion for Christ is small.
And so what I want to do today
is I want to turn our attention to Jesus
to be enthused by prayer from Him.
We see Jesus at the beginning of Luke 11.
He is praying.
And there are at least four things
that Jesus teaches us here
about prayer in these verses.
And I want these things to shape the way we're thinking
as we begin a new ministry year here at St. Paul's,
that for these things to shape our prayer life at St. Paul's.
So firstly, Jesus teaches us
to make our praying God-centered.
You see, when the disciples come to Jesus
to ask Jesus to teach them how to pray,
as they do in verse 1 of chapter 11,
He says in verse 2,
Now the Lord's Prayer is a prayer
for us to model our prayer on
rather than a prayer
that we are to pray with repetition.
I think it's somewhat ironic
that Jesus, in the same context
of giving us the Lord's Prayer,
He says don't keep babbling on as the pagans do.
That's what He does in Matthew.
And yet ever since He's given us the Lord's Prayer,
we've babbled it on consistently ever since then.
It's not a prayer
that we're meant to pray with repetition.
It's meant to be a model for prayer.
That's what the disciples are asking of Jesus here.
And of particular note is that Jesus says,
our first desire, our first request
should be that God's name be hallowed or glorified,
that His kingdom be advanced and come.
And that's what I mean by God-centered prayer.
The glory of God's name,
the advancement of God's kingdom
are the primary concerns of prayer.
And if that's foreign to you,
if you never plead for the name of God
to be holy in the way that you live,
for Him to be seen as holy in the way that you live,
or the kingdom of God to come in such a way
that you want to totally surrender to Him,
then don't be content.
Let me say, as you look forward into this year,
do not be content to stay stuck at that level of praying.
Make the glory of God the center of your prayers.
That's why we exist as a church.
We exist to know Jesus, treasure Jesus,
represent Jesus for God's glory
and the joy of all people.
So pray again and again
in as many different words as you can possibly think of
and phrases you can come up with.
Father, let your name be seen as holy in my life.
Your will be done.
Your kingdom come.
Your rule be established over my life.
In all things, that's what you're praying.
So secondly, Jesus teaches us to pray with a sense of security
in the Father's love.
Jesus doesn't want us to feel precarious or insecure in our prayers.
And He shows this mainly by teaching us to call God Father
when we pray to Him.
The prayer in verse 2 begins simply,
Father.
And then in verses 11 to 13,
He unpacks for us some of the security
which is implied by the word Father.
This is a great promise to encourage us in our praying.
It says,
Which of you fathers,
if your son asks for a fish,
will give him a snake instead?
Or if he asks for an egg,
will give him a scorpion?
If you then, though you are evil,
there's Jesus' assessment of me as a father,
if you then, though you are evil,
know how to give good gifts to your children,
how much more will your Father in heaven
give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?
The words,
how much more there,
mean something utterly, utterly important for us.
They mean that God is much more inclined
to hear me
and help me
when I pray that I am willing to hear
and help my girls
when they ask for my help.
I find that
so, so astonishing.
So, so astonishing.
You know,
if my girls are asking for help,
they're in need,
I will do whatever I can
to assist them at that point.
You know,
one of them got dumped in the beach,
you know,
we're on holidays,
came up,
as you do,
and I,
I didn't sit there going,
yeah,
they'll be right.
They'll work it out.
I've got other things to do.
And,
and,
and what it's saying here is that
the God is much more inclined
to hear and help me
than I am to take those extra steps
to help my daughter
who's gasping for breath.
Why does Jesus mention this?
I think He wants us to feel
secure in the Father's love
when we come to Him in prayer.
He doesn't want us to feel precarious.
He doesn't want us to feel unsure
of our acceptance.
He doesn't want us to feel fearful
that we will find Him
out of sorts with us
or that He will find us,
that we'll find Him
unconcerned about us.
This sense of security
is utterly crucial
in the life of prayer.
You,
I don't think you can sustain
a life of prayer
if you believe God
is stonewalling you
or that He's angry with you
or even neutral to you.
And that is why
a life of perseverance in prayer
has its absolute
foundation,
security and assurance
in the gospel.
They're not disconnected.
Prayer is sustained
by the confidence
that God is our Father,
that He is concerned
and that His disposition
towards us
is as Jesus says it is,
He is more inclined
to give you what you need
than the best human father
is inclined to give their children
what they need.
Thirdly,
Jesus teaches us
to prevail in prayer.
without doubting
the Father's love
and I mean
hanging in there,
I mean persevering,
persisting,
not giving up
in a life of prayer,
keep on asking
and seeking
and knocking
until the answer comes
or until God says,
frankly,
stop praying about that issue.
To me,
this instruction
from Jesus though
to prevail in prayer,
it feels
a little inconsistent
with His teaching
to feel secure
in the Father's love.
I mean,
if God is more caring
than the best earthly father,
then why would He
sometimes be so slow
to respond to our prayers?
There seems to be
a little bit of inconsistency
there for me.
It seems strange
that Jesus would put
both of these things
together,
side by side.
In verses 5 to 8,
Jesus tells the story
of a man who goes
to his mate's house
in the middle of the night
because a mate of his
has turned up
to his place
and he hasn't had enough food
and he needs to feed him
in the middle of the night
and he's obviously diabetic,
his sugars are running low
or something like that,
he needs to eat now
and he can't wait for breakfast.
And so he goes
to his mate's place
and he says,
give me three loaves of bread.
He's obviously pretty hungry.
Give me three loaves of bread.
But his friend,
you know,
from upstairs goes,
oh my goodness,
you know,
leans out the window.
The door's locked,
the cats are out,
I put my teeth out,
you know,
and the children are asleep,
you know,
go down to 7-Eleven
and grab some loaves
of bread from down there.
But his mate
just keeps knocking
and asking
until his friend
finally,
you know,
jams on his boxer shorts
and wanders downstairs.
But he doesn't get up
because he wants to.
It's not because
he wants to help his friend,
it's because his friend
has been prevailing,
persisting,
persevering
in knocking
and knocking
and knocking.
It's like a car alarm
that's gone off
in the car park
and won't shut up.
It feels like
an unattractive image
of prayer,
doesn't it?
God only answers
because we annoy him
enough for him to answer.
You see,
when my kids
badger me
for an answer
to a request of theirs,
it's never attractive.
Neither is my response either,
but it's never attractive.
More often than not,
it's because frankly,
I don't want to go out
of my way
to fulfill the request.
It's going to cost me something,
either dollars
or energy or...
Just like this man
in this house,
go away,
it's the middle of the night.
It's not an attractive
image of prayer
and frankly,
it's not really
an attractive image
of God,
is it?
But immediately,
Jesus says,
there's a lesson
to learn here.
He says,
See,
three times,
there are three things here,
sorry,
that stress
the importance
of not giving up
in prayer.
Firstly,
it's the present tense
of the verbs
that signifies
a continuous action.
Keep asking,
keep seeking,
keep knocking.
The second is that
Jesus actually commands
this continuous action
three times.
And then he repeats
the three words,
again in verse 10.
And the third thing
that stress is prevailing
is the three words
used here
get increasingly
close to the answer
and if you like,
show a pressing in on God.
You know,
asking,
it's the simplest thing,
it's basically
where we mostly give up.
Asking,
it requires no movement at all,
just ask God
and see what happens.
Seeking
turns the asking
into
an activity
of pursuit
and then the knocking
on again
and again
signifies
an utter earnestness,
perhaps even
a desperation
that this prayer
must be answered.
Jesus clearly
wants us
to be like
the friend
who just
was out there
and just kept knocking,
just kept knocking.
He wants us
to prevail
in prayer,
to prevail
in God-centered
prayer.
Not prayers
for your Ferrari
and stuff like that,
in God-centered
prayer.
The point of these verses
is to show us
that prevailing prayer,
persisting,
persevering in prayer
is utterly important
for us.
You see,
and what Jesus does
is he stamps
this truth
into our memories
with this terrible image
of this
mate
gone to bed
who just cannot be bothered
to get up and help
without being bothered
enough to help.
But then notice
what Jesus does,
is he makes this sudden turn
in verse 11.
And he shifts
from the grumpy mate
to the image
of the caring father
again.
Jesus qualifies
his point
in verses 11
to 13
by saying
that God
is not
like your friend
in the house.
God is the caring,
loving,
approachable father.
So yes,
sometimes
God gives us
what we need
only after a long,
long season
of prevailing
and persisting
in prayer.
But no,
it's not because
he's uncaring,
it's not because
he's insensitive,
it's not because
he's unable.
What makes it
difficult for us
is that Jesus
does not tell us
directly
why the answers
to our prayers
are postponed.
That's what makes
this passage so difficult.
He doesn't give us
an answer why.
But he does
tell us
indirectly.
He says in verse 11
that a good father
will not give
his son
a serpent
if he asks
for a fish.
In other words,
a good father
will only give
his children
what is good
for them.
And that's the
only answer
to the question
in this text.
When the father
in heaven
gives us
a slow response,
when he wills
that we
persevere
for a season
in prayer
without an
apparent answer
whatsoever,
when he wills
that we keep
knocking,
it's because
he's giving us
a fish
and not a snake.
That's the only
answer we get
from the text.
He is giving us
what is good
for us.
There is something
in the persevering,
in the asking,
in the seeking,
in the knocking
that we
need.
You see,
the power of
prayer
never means
that God
stopped being
God
and that we
start being
God.
That is,
we start
telling God
what he
needs to do.
That's not
what power of
prayer is.
We do not
have the
wisdom or the
grace to run
the universe.
God is God.
He will continue
to decide how
to run the
universe the
ultimate,
the best way.
The Christian
lives by faith
in God's
goodness and
his sovereignty.
And the
promise that
will encourage
us in
prevailing
prayer is
simply verse
10,
everyone who
asks receives,
he who
seeks finds,
and to him
who knocks,
the door will
be opened.
He's not
unresponsive to
our prayer.
We do not
pray in vain.
He is our
father.
When he hears
his children,
he responds.
He's not deaf,
he's not indifferent,
he's not powerless,
he acts and he
hears.
The final
direction that
Jesus gives us
here in prayer,
and it's really
important for us
to understand about
this concept of
prevailing prayer,
just keep knocking
and knocking and
knocking and
knocking until we
get the answer.
Because the final
direction, if you
like, is a
circling back to
the first point
of God-centered
prayer.
And if I
understand Jesus
here, he means
for this to be
the prevailing
heartbeat of our
prayer life here
at St. Paul's,
and the heartbeat
for your prayer
life for 2017,
Jesus teaches
in verse 13
that our
prevailing for
prayer, our
prevailing prayer,
our consistent
persistence, our
knocking and
seeking and
seeking, should
be a prayer for
the seeking of
the Holy Spirit.
If you then,
verse 13,
if you then,
though you are
evil, there it
is again, know
how to give good
gifts to your
children.
How much more
will your Father
in heaven give
the Holy Spirit
to those who
ask him?
You see, that's
the fish that he
delights to give
us.
That's the fish
right there.
Luke tells us
in chapter 3 that
Jesus, that while
Jesus was praying,
the Holy Spirit
descended on him
like a dove.
The outpouring of
the Spirit of
Pentecost in Acts
chapter 2 came at
the climax of a
10-day prayer vigil
and in Acts
4.31 where the
church had prayed,
the place where
they gathered was
shaken and they
were all filled
with the Holy
Spirit.
I would suggest
that prevailing
prayer is the
pathway to the
outpouring of the
Holy Spirit and
this is a constant
need for the
church.
It's a constant
need for us here
at St. Paul's
for ongoing
and continual
renewal.
Even under the
leadership of the
apostles in the
New Testament,
it is evident that
there is still
and there was
still a need
for continual
renewal in the
early church.
Just as Israel's
election as God's
people was
demonstrated at
Mount Sinai,
so the church is
constituted by the
descending and
filling of the
Holy Spirit in
Acts 2,
but just as Israel
was continually
called right
throughout the
Old Testament to
Sinai-like
covenant renewals
with God,
likewise the
church,
even when it
doesn't seem to
be in any form
of major decline,
receives fresh
feelings of the
Holy Spirit.
If you look at
the book of Acts,
there are many
pentecosts in
Acts 4,
31,
755,
817,
1044,
and 139.
That is,
there's a
continual need to
renew,
continual need for
fullness of the
Holy Spirit for the
church.
I had a conference
church,
a few years ago,
I heard American
Pastor Tim Keller
conduct a seminar
on the history of
revival,
which is basically
what I mean and
what he means when
we're talking about
spiritual renewal.
And he gave you a
glimpse of what the
outpouring of God's
spirit looks like in
the local church.
And let me tell you,
it was compelling for
someone like me,
it just set my heart on
fire when I listened to
him say this.
He said,
spiritual renewal,
he's also written
about it,
which is what I'm
quoting here.
He said,
spiritual renewal is a
work of God in which
the church is beautified
and empowered because
the normal operations of
the Holy Spirit are
intensified.
When there is an
outpouring of the
Spirit on and within
the congregation,
the presence of God
among his people
becomes evident and
palpable.
When spiritual renewal
happens, sleepy or
stagnant Christians
wake up.
There is a new and a
deeper conviction of
sin and repentance
not just for the
major behavioural
sins but for
attitudes, deep
attitudes in the
heart.
But with that,
they experience,
the same people
experience the far
more powerful
assurance of the
nearness of God
and his love for
them.
And with the end
result, the
Christians become
both humble and
bold at exactly the
same time.
The more deeply one
feels his or her
debt of sin, the
more intensely he or
she feels the
wonder of the
payment on their
behalf.
He goes on and
says,
nominal Christians
or Christians by
name only begin to
realise they don't
actually have a living
relationship with
Jesus, with Christ by
grace and they get
converted.
And he said it
electrifies people.
Long-term members are
getting up and talking
about being converted
or speaking of Christ
in radiant terms and
expressing repentance
in brand new ways.
The early stage of
renewal shake up other
nominals and sleepers
into renewal.
And corporately,
there's a sense of
more passion and
more freedom and the
presence of God in
corporate worship is
just palpable.
As a result of this
outpouring of the
Spirit, new people are
brought into the church
and the church begins
to grow.
On the one hand, the
renewed believers create
a far more attractive
community of sharing and
caring and often great
worship.
This is the beautified
community of the King.
This can attract people
from the outside.
On the other hand,
Christians who begin to
experience God's beauty
and His power and love
put their relationship
with Christ and His
church as first in
their lives.
They become radiant and
attractive witnesses,
more willing and
confident to talk to
others about their
faith, more winsome and
less judgmental when they
do so, and more confident
in their own church and
thus more willing to
invite people to visit
their own church.
And as a result, there
are numerous conversions,
significant, even at
times astounding, church
growth occurs.
And so there is an
impact on the community
surrounding the church
and even the broader
culture.
Spiritual renewal
produces people who
become involved in
works of social concern
and social justice.
The reason for this is
that real holiness
changes the private and
the public lives of
Christians.
True religion is not
merely a matter, a
private matter, providing
internal peace and
fulfillment.
Rather, it transforms
our behavior and our
relationships.
man, that just,
bring it on.
You know, that's what
spiritual renewal,
pray for that for
St. Paul's.
Pray for that across
the church.
That just sets my
heart on fire.
You see, when
Callie is talking about
spiritual renewal, as
I believe the Bible
does, he means a deep
renewal of the gospel
in our hearts, which is
the work of the Holy
Spirit through the word
of God.
It's not some random
thing that happens
without the word of
God.
It is something where
the Spirit of God does
a deep work in our
hearts through his word
and brings us alive.
Let me just stand over
here just for a moment
and put my community
group hat on and say,
get in a community
group in 2007-8.
This sort of stuff
happens in community.
Get into a community
group for your joy, for
your maturity, for
your growth, and for
your transformation as
a Christian.
And if your community
group is not praying for
this kind of renewal,
then work for this kind
of renewal in your
community group.
Okay, that's my plug.
This is the sort of
stuff I want to see
happen here at St.
Paul's this year.
Will you pray for it?
Pray for this kind of
renewal in your heart
for you and for us
corporately in this
coming week.
This is prayer week.
Make it a focus this
coming week.
There is so much to
say about spiritual
renewal of a church,
but we will, let me
just focus on what is
biblically and
historically the one
non-negotiable
universal ingredient in
times of spiritual
renewal.
Corporate, prevailing,
intensive, kingdom-centered
prayer.
A pleading for God, for
the fullness of the
Spirit.
Kingdom-centered prayer
is focused on God's
presence and His
kingdom.
It's the sort of
prayer that is
modeled for us in the
Lord's prayer.
It is a prayer for
grace to confess our
sins, to humble
ourselves, prayer for
compassion and zeal for
the flourishing of the
church and for a
yearning to know God,
to see His face, to see
His glory.
Such prayer need not,
in fact, I would say,
usually does not begin as
an organized church
program.
All right, first way to
begin is let's organize a
church prayer program.
Let's have some prayer
meetings.
That's not normally how
it starts.
It often begins with
people like you, people
like me, who spend time in
prayerful self-examination.
That's where it begins.
So this is prayer week, and
if you do nothing else
this week, spend this
prayer this week in
prayerful self-examination
with confidence.
And on one hand, total
confidence in the gospel
and what you have in
Jesus.
Be hard on yourself at the
same time and search out,
examine your heart for
idols that that displace
Jesus as the supreme
treasure and Lord of your
life.
kingdom-centered prayer is
prevailing.
By this, I simply mean that
prayer should be constant,
not sporadic.
It shouldn't be brief.
Not because, as we've already
seen, that God wants us to
grovel or that he doesn't
care, but sporadic, brief
prayer shows a lack of
dependence on God.
It's a healthy self-sufficiency,
an unhealthy self-sufficiency.
We must pray without ceasing,
we must pray long, we must
pray hard for spiritual
renewal.
And when we do, we will find
that the very process itself
is bringing about the very
thing that we're asking for,
to have our hard hearts
melted, to tear down barriers,
barriers, and to have the
glory of God break through
that we might see his face.
So as we kick off a new year
of ministry, we are doing
what we have done for a
number of years, beginning
the ministry year in a week
of prayer.
And we do this, I think,
for a number of reasons.
One is we make a statement
as a church.
It's a statement to God,
it's a statement to the world,
it's a statement to our own
consciences, that we exist
as a church to do things
that we cannot do without
the supernatural grace of God.
I believe that God has given
us a vision for the future
for us as a church.
We launched it back in
November last year.
But he's given us a vision
which is just so hard
and so difficult
that we ought to consistently
be going back to him to ask
him for the ability to
fulfill the vision he's given
us because we cannot do it
ourselves.
Everything good,
everything worthwhile,
everything eternal,
and God glorifying that we
want to do as a church,
we cannot do without the
supernatural grace of God.
And so as we begin this year
together, I would urge you to
take time to pray for
yourselves, that you would
enter into a brand new season
of self-examination.
If you're not used to praying,
maybe the first prayer is,
Lord, help me to pray.
Teach me to pray.
Ask that you may be with full
assurance in Christ,
nonetheless hard on yourself.
Self-examination.
Lord, expose the idols of my
heart.
Ask that God would show you
ways in which you don't
represent Christ as you should
in your relationships, in your
work life, in your family life,
in your habits, in your
attitudes, in your
relationships here, even with
church.
Take time to pray for
yourself.
That God will make things you
know about the gospel, things
that you've heard over and
over and over again, make
their way to your heart so that
it explodes your affections for
Christ.
Amen.