First Baptist Church of Diana, Texas

A great section from Paul’s teaching on prayer is found here in the book of Colossians. Paul gives us five keys to open the door to a powerful prayer life.

Key # 1 – Devotion
Key # 2 – Alertness
Key # 3 – Thankfulness
Key # 4 – A Mind Set on Others
Key # 5 – A Mind Set on the Things of God

In this section we will deal with devotion. Paul speaks to us in the 2^nd verse of the 4^th chapter of the letter to the church at Colossae saying “devote yourself to prayer.” The word devote is from a Greek compound word using the preposition “from” in the sense of meaning toward and the word kartereho meaning strength. Literally the phrase means to be with an earnestness in prayer.

First it seems as though the idea of giving your strength toward prayer speaks of the seriousness of the matter.  Only those things which are the most serious to us gain the bulk of our strength. This also speaks of the worthiness of the practice of prayer. Conversations with God that seek his heart and his mind are certainly the most serious conversations you and I will ever have with anyone. It was serious when Moses spent time on the mountain to hear the heart of God. It was serious when Jesus spent time in the Garden seeking the heart of the Father. It was serious when that little church gathered in the upper room to pray until the coming of the Spirit. It was serious the day you bowed your heart in prayer asking for your own salvation and the forgiveness of your sins. This idea of devotion speaks of the seriousness of prayer. I am reminded the Bible says you have not because you ask not. When we get serious about the asking, God gets serious about the answering.

Second the idea of devotion is one of giving you strength. This idea alone signals to us that prayer is work. It was work when Jesus prayed in the garden and it was laborious when the church banded together to prayer for Peter’s release.  As Paul speaks of asking three times for the removal of the thorn in the flesh we get the idea that he prayed deliberately and earnestly. Even though Paul received a no for his request, he also received a strong word of encouragement from the Lord. Sometimes when we pray we don’t get our initial desire but God gives us something better and stronger. In this case he received a powerful promise, “My grace is sufficient for you.”  By the grace of God, Paul learned how to experience the sufficiency of God in his own weakness. But much better than that, in every circumstance of life Paul learned to lean on the promise given in that prayer, “My grace is sufficient for you.” That promise, gained in an earnest prayer before God, must have carried him time and time again when the traveling became difficult. “ My Grace is sufficient. While in prison, while persecuted, while beaten and ship wrecked, Paul lived out the promise gained through the labor of prayer. Perhaps our prayers are powerless because there is no labor in prayer. This idea of work in prayer speaks of its intensity.

Third the idea of devotion in prayer reminds us that it is something that captures us. That of which we devote ourselves is that which captures us in several ways. First it captures our attention.  Of course when prayer captures our attention it is not really prayer that has captured us but it is God and the things of God. This is primary in so many ways but especially in powerful prayer. The thought of being captured by the Lord and the things of God suggests that our desires are turned to see the kingdom of God come on earth. It is to desire an experience with God in His fullness right here on this earth in our time. To give attention means to give it thought and interaction. When our attention is captured so are our other resources. That brings us to the second part of being captured which is a portion of our time. Here the Lord deals with our frequency. It was in this vein that Paul could say “pray without ceasing.” When God has our attention, life is a continual prayer. Rick Killian says it this way, “The idea is that life is an open book to the Lord. Every moment of every day is in constant communication with the Lord.  One of the first things that Paul teaches us is that prayer is much more than a spiritual discipline to be entered into during certain times and seasons. It should instead be as close and as regular as your breath, integrated into every fiber of your being. “

Now for a self check. Can you say you are devoted to prayer.  Do you think when striking out that conversation with God of the serious nature of the practice on which you are embarking? Perhaps you have taken prayer lightly or flippantly. Now is the time to change or repent and return to the seriousness in prayer you enjoyed on the day Jesus saved your soul. What about your labors in prayer? Are you one to pray the easy times like the blessing over a meal and skirt the harder things like desperately seeking God for all decisions in life? Even those that may require fasting and days of prayer prior to hearing the voice of God? And then, has God captured you so that your life is captured by prayer?  This is a call to prayer.  Let us learn to pray in power first by learning to be devoted to prayer.

Introduction.

James 5:16b says the prayers of a righteous man can accomplish much. The reference is to the prayers of Elijah in his battle with Jezebel and the prophets of Baal found in 1 Kings 17-18. The invitation is striking.  Someone who has welcomed the righteousness of Christ into their life can accomplish much through praying.  I believe that simple statement in James 5 begs us to come closer to the biblical teaching on prayer to see what it is that unlocks this heavenly power on earth and when is a man righteous in a way that causes heaven to act when he speaks toward the Lord. Surely there is a relationship to the model prayer where Jesus prayed, “Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven (Matthew 6:10 NASB). There is a connection between the man who can pray with requests on earth that match the will of God in Heaven. Some have prayed in that way.

The passage in 1 Kings speaks of Elijah who according to James 5:17 was a common man just as each of us are common men.  But this brother prayed in earnest that it would not rain and so it was for three years and six months it did not rain. Elijah endured the drought just as all the men on the earth at that time endured the drought.  He suffered along with them.  For a period of time the brook of Cherith where he was camped dried up and God provided his needs through a widow. In due time he prayed again and heaven opened up with a mighty rain. Elijah prayed powerful prayers.

Moses was also a man of great prayer. His discussions with God are recorded in the book of Exodus and show us a man who talked openly with the Lord.  Moses communion with God was sometimes private as when he prayed on the mountain. At other times it was continual as when God gave him the rod and he used the rod as though it were an extension of the power of God. I believe Moses was a powerful man of prayer.

Few have walked in the kind of prayer life of King David. A picture of his prayer life is found in 2 Samuel 24:25 where it says, “David built there an altar to the LORD and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. Thus the LORD was moved by prayer for the land, and the plague was held back from Israel.” The prayers of David caused the Lord to hold back his hand.  David was  great man of praise writing numerous psalms and hymns.

Prayer seems to be an ingredient in the New Testament when God would move His hand. The disciples went to the Upper Room after the ascension to wait for the Holy Spirit. After they had prayed together for a time, the Holy Spirit invaded the room and their spirits were given to the control of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:1-4) Peter was moved to preach his first sermon and you might say that Pentecost was ushered in on the breath of the prayers of the disciples. In some way heaven is moved by the prayers of the saints.

One could say that all those who asked blessings from Jesus were praying. When the centurion asked for the healing of his servant, he and Jesus had a conversation and heaven moved with a healing. The key was the faith of the centurion. Faith is definitely in the mix of what it takes to pray with power.

Another great story about answered prayer centers around Peter’s imprisonment. Herod has Peter arrested in the first part of Acts 12. Verse 5 says Peter was in jail but fervent prayers were being offered for him by the church.  In the night, an angel appeared striking Peter’s side. His chains fell off and he escaped.  A great part of the story is when he went to the place where the prayer meeting was happening, the servant girl reported to the larger congregation that Peter was with them, they refused to believe. Not all prayers must have faith in the immediate for an immediate answer.  God works mightily when people pray.

Not all prayers were answered in the affirmative and one of Paul’s prayers is no exception.  According to his own words, Paul asked God three times to remove a thorn from his flesh but God refused instead saying, my grace is sufficient for you (1 Corinthians 12:7-9). At other times it was as though Paul’s prayers touched heaven. While Paul was preaching one day Eutychus fell out of the window and was picked up dead. Paul hovered over him and soon Eutychus was alive. I believe Paul’s prayers moved heaven and the boy was raised (Acts 20:9-11). In Acts 19 the power of God is manifest through Paul in the working of many miracles. Paul was truly walking in the Spirit and surely we would make a connection between his teaching and example of prayer and the power of God on his life.

Perhaps as you read this thought today, you should look back over your years of communion with God and reflect upon the answers He has delivered to your prayers. If you keep a prayer journal, now would be an excellent time to praise Him for His greatness and divine intervention through your prayer life. If you haven’t experienced God’s mighty hand through your prayer life, do not be discouraged. The fact that you are reading this writing means that God is piquing your interest in a power filled prayer life. Continue with us on this journey as we explore the power of Paul’s prayer life through his teaching and his example from the Bible.

The following is the script from a funeral service for an infant in our congregation. Several in our congregation were unable to attend and the family has agreed that it would be ok to publish this sermon for our church community and others who might find comfort from these words.

Friends and Family, I am especially glad you have come today to join with us as we seek for a healing embrace of the Living God, as we cry out for understanding, ask for a divine touch of comfort, and worship our Lord who is completely righteous, perfect in wisdom, and always on time with His actions.

“In the most beautiful of gardens, even those tended by the most skillful of botanists, there is an occasional rose that buds, but never opens.  In all respects the rose is like all the others,  but something keeps it from blooming.  It fades away – or disappears – without having reached maturity.”

What happens in nature’s garden happens once in a while also in the garden of God’s human family.  A baby is born, beautiful, precious, but fails to come to its rightful unfolding.  This child, like the bud that never fully opens, is gathered back into God’s heavenly garden of souls – where all imperfections are made perfect; all injustices made right; all mysteries are explained; and all sorrows turned to happiness (Marjory MacMartin marj.macmartin@sympatico.ca)

Today we mourn our loss of such a child.  We weep, just as Jesus himself wept at the death of his friend Lazarus.  Even if we knew the answers to the questions that rise so naturally to our hearts and minds at times like this, there still would be no adequate explanation for this loss.  It is painful.

Let us Pray.

Matt 6:20-21

20 “But store up for yourselves atreasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal;  21 for awhere your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Last Sunday morning, the treasure chest in heaven gained a new jewel as the soul of Addison Hernandez made her flight from here to arms of Jesus. Not only did Addison make her transport, but as the Scripture indicates, a little bit of our hearts made the transition to heaven as well. You see, the greatest treasure in heaven is the Lord Jesus Christ, but other rewards capture our hearts as well. There are the treasures that constitute the rewards for our works on this earth, but there are the treasures who have gone before. At times one who has lived out a fruitful long journey on this earth makes their way to heaven and we can easily celebrate with them even as we mourn for them. When they have struggled with difficult diseases it seems much easier to let them go. The fact that we can celebrate their lives and accept their homegoing makes them no less of a treasure in heaven. In these days our hearts are in heaven because that is the place of our treasure.

But a circumstance like this is not so easy to accept. With one so tiny yet with such promise for so many things it leaves us with more questions than we have answers. We will likely never know the answer to the questions of why this life was orchestrated in such a way? Why were our hopes and dreams not allowed to enter into a life with Addison?  We will not answer these questions today, and I find it more satisfying in this world to deal with what we know than what might have been or what could have been because I have learned that although we can dream and speculate about such things, we cannot really know such things.

We can know the things that God has taught us in the Scriptures. He has taught us that there are treasures in heaven. He has also taught us about the event that follows death.

He has said to us that those who die in Christ Jesus are transported immediately to be with Him. To the one beside him on the cross who believed, He said today you shall be with me in paradise. Through the Apostle Paul He said to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.  He has said to us if we possess a faith in God that changes our lives we will have eternal life.

But what about an infant? Aren’t we all born guilty due to our sin nature? Yes, you are theologically correct. The Scripture teaches us that there is none righteous, no not one. Even the most innocent of babies has been born with a sinful nature and is in need of redemption. No doubt, that truth is one most difficult to grasp, however, there is within the Bible teachings about little children who die before their mental capacity could develop in order to grasp the sinfulness of their heart and make the spiritual and mental step from self to God.

A great passage to teach us this truth is found in 2 Sam 12:21-23

21 Then his servants said to him, “What is this thing that you have done? While the child was alive, you fasted and wept; but when the child died, you arose and ate food.” 22 He said, “While the child was still alive, I fasted and wept; for I said, ‘Who knows, the Lord  may be gracious to me, that the child may live.’ 23 “But now he has died; why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him, but bhe will not return to me.”

If the child died, where did he go – into the arms of Jesus – to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.

King David had an understanding that he would go to the child. The indication here is that the child has gone to a place of eternity where David would also go. Notice some things about this truth, there was no baptism, no circumcision, and no great prayer meeting to deliver a soul from purgatory. There was an immediate transport to the gates of heaven.

I believe this is proof enough of the biblical teaching about infants and heaven. Even so there is no direct confirmation of this Scripture from the Lord.  On this passage I find nothing else in the Bible that would contradict David’s proclamation. I do find support for his statement such as when Jesus said you can only come to Jesus if you come as little child. I find confirmation when Paul writes to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.

So Chris and Kathy, I believe today you have a treasure in heaven and that treasure is a human being which I believe is the capstone of God’s creation

In these days there will be many of us who will try to bring you comfort through words that we say.  Some of our words may be helpful and some may not. Please know that each of us are at a loss for words in trying to grasp the mystery of life and death that is before us. There is no human rationalizing capable of knowing exactly why God extends the life of some while shortening the lives of others. We do know that we live in an imperfect world due to the fall of man in the garden. We know that when sin entered into humanity, all of creation was affected and sickness, disease, and death will be a part until Jesus comes back.

Some may tell you that God wanted or needed a child in heaven. While that may seem to give purpose to a life, I am certain God is not the selfish deity that statement implies, He is complete in Himself. Some may say it was God’s will and in a sense we must say it fits within His permissive will. But understand, it was never in God’s perfect will for man to sin and death to enter in although He gave man a choice in many matters which resulted in sin and death.

Some may tell you that you are young and you can have other children. And while that may be true, we must remember that other children will not replace the emptiness you feel in your heart. Addison was a special gift from the Lord, unique and precious. Nothing could replace nor should replace her in your heart.

Chris and Kathy, we mean well when we say things that may even bring more pain than healing so we ask you to simply bless us for our effort to be of comfort and hold to the fact that there are mysteries in this life for which we have no answers.

Even though we may not know the answers, we can go on. King David, picked himself up and worshipped upon news that his child had died. What a great and challenging reminder of two very important truths for us to be able to deal with tragedy and in particular, a tragedy like this:

1.  While Addison has been transported to the arms of Jesus, we remain on this earth and our time is not over. We have other family that God has included for us to enjoy this life. We have a continuing ministry and walk with Him here. We must go on. We must, just as did King David, make a decision that life continues and we must continue our journey.

God is our greatest and only strength to cope with the tragedy at hand. King David prepared himself and worshipped the Lord. We must also turn a corner to worship the Lord even in the midst of our pain. CS Lewis once said, God whispers to us in our pleasure, He speaks to us in our conscience, but He shouts to us in our pain. While we are well aware that God has the power to intervene and that leads us to the place that we can desire that God would have intervened in a different way than He did, He is also the God of all wisdom and comfort. If we can come to the place where we can trust Him, even in this action, we are not far from receiving strength for our days and great blessing through his great pipeline of faith.