23. 1 John 3:19-23: "Confident Prayer"

1st John chapter 3 starting in verse 19. Hear now the inspired word of God. We will know by this that we are of the truth and will assure our heart before him and whatever our heart condemns us for God is greater than our heart and knows all things.

Beloved if our heart does not condemn us we have confidence before God and whatever we ask we receive from him because we keep his commandments and do the things that are pleasing in his sight. This is his commandment that we believe in the name of his son Jesus Christ and love one another just as he commanded us.

Let's pray. Father once again we bow before you and prepare to look into your word. We ask that you would open our eyes our ears and our hearts that we would see hear and understand what you have to say to your church this morning and then hearing it father that we would apply it to our lives especially on this important topic of coming before you with confidence in our prayers.

We pray this in Jesus name amen. Please be seated. It was in the early years of hope we were meeting in a rented facility a storefront in Farmingville and the pastor's study was very small the size of a glorified closet really but it was right next to the pulpit in the in the church.

One Sunday I was sitting in the study speaking with a missionary who was to be our special speaker for that day. All of a sudden the door swung open and in rushed my five-year-old daughter. She immediately shouted daddy and jumped into my lap gave me a big hug and a kiss.

Then shortly after her arrival she left just as abruptly. Our speaker just sat there and he had a big smile from ear to ear on his face. Of course I apologized for the interruption but his response was rather interesting.

He says don't apologize. He said because what I've just witnessed is a beautiful picture of our relationship as children of God to our Heavenly Father. He continued by saying he says your daughter wasn't trying to see the pastor of the church.

She wanted to see her daddy even if that meant opening a closed door and she didn't really care what was on the other side of the door. She was excited to see me to hug and kiss me. A closed door was no obstacle for her.

He continued he said if only Christians would be that excited to meet with their Heavenly Father. As his children there is never a closed door between us and him. As his children there is no outside obstacle that prevents us from coming to him in prayer.

That's John's next point in his exhortation to the first century church which we've been studying. He addresses the importance of prayer for the child of God in his quest for assurance of faith and that is linked directly to the previous verses showing us that love of the brethren is an extremely important outworking of true faith.

Look at verse 19. We will know by this that we are of the truth and will assure our heart before him. If we are loving the brethren as we've been examining for weeks now we will be assured that we are of the truth.

That's what John says. That means that we are children of God and and that will give us the assurance to come boldly and confidently before him in prayer. We need to understand it's a biblical principle that the prayer of faith is one that is answered.

Not every prayer that is uttered is answered. In fact James makes it very clear in the first chapter of his epistle where he's speaking about this very subject. He says but he must ask in faith without any doubting for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea driven and tossed by the wind.

For that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord being a double-minded man unstable in all his ways. Dr. Martyn Lloyd Jones also gives some insight in his commentary on these very verses.

This is what the good doctor said. The first question that John seems to raise is this. What is prayer? He says I wonder how often we stop to consider that and yet it seems to me that it is a question which should always be uppermost in our minds.

What exactly am I doing when I pray? Is it not our tendency to rush into prayer without considering what we are doing? Is it not our tendency to regard it as something automatic? Are we not always in danger of talking too easily about saying our prayers?

And he continues we do not say a prayer. There is nothing automatic in it. Indeed I think a case should be made for saying that the most difficult thing of all is to pray. So with those thoughts in mind I'm going to pause and examine that very question.

What is prayer? But first by way of an introduction we're going to use Jesus as an example because Jesus was a praying man. What did Jesus pray and how did he pray? Well the first thing that I want to point out is Jesus prayed often.

I'm not going to spend too much time on that proving that point because as we go through his prayers this point becomes patently obvious. Jesus was frequently found to be in prayer. In fact if you go through the scriptures it seems that whenever the disciples couldn't find Jesus he was often some secluded spot praying.

Luke gives us an indication of that in chapter 5 verse 16. But Jesus himself would often slip away to the wilderness and pray. Which brings to the next point that Jesus often prayed in secret. Now don't get me wrong.

Public praying is mandated by scripture. In fact the scriptures indicate that there is almost what you call special power in the prayers of the people of God joining together in prayer. That's why we place such an emphasis on our corporate prayer meeting.

When the church gathers together and prays and lifts our voices together there is special power. But there is also the necessity for those private prayers. Those times when you meet with God and you pour your heart out to your Heavenly Father in secret.

And we see this in the life of Jesus even early in his ministry. In Luke chapter 5 verses 15 and 16. But the news about him was spreading even farther and large crowds were gathered to hear him and to be healed by the sickness.

But Jesus himself in spite of all of that Jesus himself would slip away to the wilderness and pray. Jesus understood the need for undistracted praying. Mark 1 verse 35 we read this. In the early morning while it was still dark Jesus got up left the house went away to a secluded place and was praying there.

And we even see that where Jesus intentionally removed himself from ministry to pray alone. In Matthew chapter 14 he says, and when he had sent the crowds away he went up to the mountains by himself to pray.

And when it was evening he was there alone. And again in Luke 9 verse 18. And it happened while he was praying alone. And we see this principle applied to us when when Jesus was teaching his disciples how to pray in the Sermon on the Mount.

Remember what he said in Matthew 6 6. But you when you pray go into your inner room. Close your door and pray to your father who is in secret. And your father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.

So praying alone undistracted is an absolute necessity for the Christian. We see that in the example of Jesus. Another characteristic of the prayers of Jesus. He prayed long. Luke 6 verse 12. It was at this time that he went off to the mountain to pray and he spent the whole night in prayer to God.

Now there is certainly a time for short prayers. Especially when you're praying for a specific purpose. For example at the end of each morning worship service there's a benediction. And that's typically a short prayer because it's a limited purpose.

Pronouncing a blessing on a congregation as they are dismissed. Doesn't have to be wordy. Praying a blessing on a meal. This is one that's very often abused. I've actually seen pastors asked to thank them to put the blessing you know pray the blessing for the food.

And they prayed so long for so many other things. And they neglected to pray for the food. If you're asked to say the blessing pray for the food. I'm gonna eat that. But we certainly see the need for spending time with God in prayer.

Jesus even admonished his disciples for falling asleep while he was praying. Just for an hour. But Jesus also using him as an example. He prayed with confidence. Jesus prayed knowing that his prayers were heard by God and would be answered.

In John chapter 11. This is at the tomb of Lazarus. We read in verse 41. So they removed the stone. Then Jesus raised his eyes and said father I thank you that you have heard me. And in verse 42 is instructive.

I knew that you always hear me. But because of the people standing around I said it so that they may believe that you sent me. Because of his perfect relationship with his father. There was never a question in the mind of Jesus about the efficacy of his prayers.

And that too is instructive for us. Remember the promise even in his last discourse. In John chapter 14 verse 13. Remember this is a promise for us. Whatever you ask in my name that I will do. So that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

If you ask me anything in my name I will do it. It's a promise of answered prayer. And the condition of answered prayer is that it is in the name of Jesus. And we've seen what that means. That's not just tacking the name of Jesus on the end of the prayer.

But that's praying in submission to the will of God. And that praying gives glory to God. Which is our next point. Jesus always prayed for the glory of God. You'll see that is exactly how Jesus begins his farewell prayer.

That glorious high priestly prayer in verse chapter 17 of John. First verse. Jesus spoke these things lifting up his eyes to heaven. He said, Father the hour has come. Glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you.

Should be no surprise to us. Since this is the number one goal of Jesus on earth. That was his goal to glorify God. In John chapter 12 verse 27. And I love these two verses. I just love them. This is Jesus.

Now my soul has become troubled. What shall I say? Father save me from this hour. But for this purpose I came to this hour. Father glorify your name. Then a voice came out of heaven. I have both glorified it and will glorify it again.

We also see that Jesus prayed in times of great distress. As he prepared to go to the cross he was troubled. In Mark chapter 14 verse 32. We read they came to a place named Gethsemane. And he said to his disciples, sit here until I have prayed.

And he took with him Peter and James and John. And he began to be very distressed and troubled. And he said to them, my soul is grieved to the point of death. Remain here and keep watch. And Mark tells us he left them, went a little beyond and fell to the ground and began to pray.

And he prayed with such fervor, such intensity that his sweat became like drops of blood. It's called the beginning of the passion of Christ. When Jesus Christ was grieving in a time of great agony of his soul, what did he do?

He prayed. And he prayed with passion. Then Jesus prayed for his enemies. That always gets me. He prayed for his enemies. As he was dying on the cross, he prayed for those who were putting him there and killing him.

Luke 23 verse 34. Jesus was saying, this is on the cross. Father, forgive them. For they do not know what they are doing. Father, forgive them. Forgive the ones who were striking him with those blows, taunting him.

The ones that hung him on the cross, forgive them. Jesus also prayed with love. In all the prayers that we've looked at so far this morning, we can see the great love that he had for his people. But even more importantly, we can see the love he has for his heavenly father.

This is seen in his perfect obedience. And as he taught, obedience is a sign of love. It is seen in his passion, his overwhelming desire to please his father. Notice how all of his prayers are to glorify his father.

His willingness to suffer the agony of the cross and the wrath of God in our place. These are the things he prayed for. And it is even seen in his final prayer. From the moments before his death, he prayed.

Remember, his final prayer is not his farewell prayer. After his farewell prayer, that high priestly prayer, he had one final prayer that we know of while he was hanging on the cross. And Jesus, crying out with a loud voice, Luke 23, verse 46, said, Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.

And having said this, he breathed his last. His prayer life is an amazing demonstration of all of these characteristics, and even more. And we will see them all again in his farewell prayer. Now let's look at the question that's been raised from our text.

What is prayer? You may say, well, that's an easy question. Then why is prayer so neglected, if it's so obvious and so easy? I think prayer is, I agree with Dr. Martin Lloyd-Jones, it's very neglected and misunderstood.

So let's kind of work our way through this. First and foremost, prayer is an act of worship. The Psalms are great examples of prayers of worship. I'm just going to do some excerpts, but when I give you a psalm, you can take it to the bank that the whole psalm is appropriate.

But look at Psalm 48. Look at how this psalmist begins. Great is the Lord, greatly to be praised. In the city of our God, his holy mountain, beautiful in elevation, the joy of the whole earth, is Mount Zion in the far north, the city of the great king.

And that psalm just goes on. That gives us an example of a God-centered prayer, glorifying God. It's an act of worship. Psalm 66, starting in verse 1, shout joyfully to God all the earth, sing the glory of his name, make his praise glorious.

Say to God how awesome are your works, because of the greatness of your power, your enemies will have will give feigned obedience to you. This simply means that God should be the center of your prayers.

Every Sunday after the collection is being taken, we sing from Revelation 411, which is an example of a biblical prayer. Revelation 411, worthy are you, O Lord our God, to receive glory and honor and power.

For you created all things, and because of your will they existed and were created. Thou art worthy, O Lord. Prayer is one of the ways we worship God. Also, secondly, prayer is a means of grace. Now remember what grace is.

Grace is God's unmerited favor by which he grants us, first of all, salvation in Jesus Christ. That's why we refer to the doctrines of salvation in this church. We call them the doctrines of grace. Ephesians 2, 8, 9, very familiar but right on point.

For by grace you have been saved through faith, that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not as result of works that no one should boast. But grace is also used as another aspect to it. In Luke 22, Jesus tells Peter that Satan is going to tempt him.

Let me just read two verses. Verse 31, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat. Now there's some bad news. But the response of Jesus is interesting. He says, but I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail.

And you, when you, once you have been turned again, strengthen your brothers. That's a prayer for grace. In that sense, I like this definition. The grace that he speaks of there is the desire and the ability to do God's will.

We see that also in the life and death of Stephen. Acts 6, 8, and Stephen, full of grace and power, was performing great wonders and signs among the people. God gives grace to his people in various ways.

Psalm 84, 11, for the Lord God is his son and his shield. The Lord gives grace and glory. No good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly. Psalm 84, 11, I'm sorry, that was the one I just read.

Proverbs 3, 34, though he scoffs at the scoffers, yet he gives grace to the afflicted. The grace of God is essential. You cannot live the Christian life on your own. And that's what Jesus says in John chapter 15, where he says in verse 4, abide in me and I in you.

The branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in me and I in him, he bears much fruit.

For apart from me you can do nothing. And prayer is one of the most important ways that you receive grace for ministry. Verse 41 of Matthew 26, Jesus says, keep watching and praying that you may not enter into temptation.

The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak. You need to pray for God's grace. And then Luke 18, 1 is very instructive. Now he was telling them a parable to show them that at all times they ought to pray.

You get any idea? James 5, 13, is any among you suffering? Let him pray. Colossians 4, 2, devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving. Praying at the same time for us as well.

James 4, 6, but he gives greater grace. Ephesians 18, 1, I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened. And Paul goes on, and again in Philippians 1, verse 9, and this I pray that your love may abound still more and more in real knowledge and all discernment.

Look up the prayers of Paul. You need some examples of what you should pray for. Prayer is also an acknowledgement of the sovereignty of God. Listen to the beginning of Psalm 47, and again this is just the beginning.

Oh, clap your hands, all peoples. Shout to God with the voice of joy. For the Lord most high is to be feared, the great king over all the earth. He subdues peoples under us and nations under our feet.

He chooses our inheritance for us, the glory of Jacob whom he loves. And the remainder of the Psalm carries that theme as well. We need to understand something. Praying is not manipulating God to do something that he doesn't want to do.

God is not powerless unless you pray as some false preachers tell you. Praying is asking God to do the very things that he has promised that he will do. Praying would be an effort in futility were God not sovereign and able to accomplish all that he has said he can do.

And also praying is not bringing things to God's mind that he doesn't already know. Remember in the Sermon on the Mount, therefore do not be like them. Don't pray like the hypocrites, meaningless repetition, for your father knows what you need before you ask him.

That being said, praying is God's way of moving and acting in his creation. God has chosen it that way, that our prayers are efficacious. He has chosen to use the prayers of his people to accomplish his purpose.

Understand this too, praying is not changing God's mind or his eternal purposes. God uses your prayers to bring about his eternal decree. Therefore it is essential that you pray in his will. John 14, 13.

And whatever you ask in my name, that will I do. And the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it. And we've already seen the prayers of Jesus are great examples.

In fact, in the instructional prayer in Matthew chapter 6, he teaches us to pray in this way. Thy will be done. In his high priestly prayer, he says, I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work with which you have given me to do.

And in the Garden of Gethsemane, he prays, not my will, but yours be done. And then in Luke 10, when he was sending the disciples out, he was saying to them, the harvest is plentiful, but the labors are few.

So what does he do? How does he commission the church? Therefore, beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out labors into his harvest. Pray. Also, prayer is God's chosen method for us to present our petitions and supplications.

Philippians 4, verse 6, be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, let your request be made known to God. And the peace of God, which passes all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

And in Psalm 86, verse 6, give ear, O Lord, to my prayer, and give heed to the voice of my supplications. In the day of my trouble, I will call you, for you will answer me. The Psalms are just full of examples of all kinds of prayers.

There are prayers of just pure worship and praise, just for who God is. Sometimes we forget that we need to pray that way. There are cries of help for times in distress. There are Psalms of thanksgiving for answered prayers and for deliverance.

So as Paul said, don't be anxious for anything. Bring everything to God in prayer. Which brings us to our next point, and that is that prayer is an exercise of faith. Now, of course, this goes hand-in-hand with acknowledging his sovereignty.

If we understand that God is the one and only sovereign God in the universe, then we also must have faith in him to provide for us. And that faith is exercised every time we pray. Once again, we turn to the Psalms for guidance.

David writes in Psalm 40, verse 1, I waited patiently for the Lord, and he inclined to me and heard my cry. He brought me up out of the pit of destruction, out of the miry clay, and he set my feet upon the rock, making my footsteps firm.

He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. Many will see and fear and will trust in the Lord. Let me just pause on that for a minute. You ever find yourself in the pit of destruction?

You ever feel like you're in the miry clay? If you fog a mirror, you have to answer yes. We all face serious, serious trouble. And look what he says. When you pray, he set his feet upon a rock, making the footsteps firm.

Put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise. He says, then he will see and fear and will trust in the Lord. Prayer is also a spiritual discipline. It's required and expected from the Christian. Praying is part and parcel of the Christian life.

It cannot be separated from it. Now let me say this. Praying doesn't make you a Christian, but you cannot be a Christian and not pray. The prayers of the saints are as incense to the Lord. It is one of the ways we can please him.

Revelation 5, 8, and when he had taken the book, the four living creatures and the 24 elders fell down before the Lamb, having each one a harp and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.

Do you see the picture that's painted for us? When you pray, your prayers go up to the Lord, and it's like a sweet-smelling incense, favorable to our God. We see that again in Revelation chapter 8, verse 3.

And another angel came and stood at the altar holding a golden censer, and much incense was given to him that he might add it to the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar, which was before the throne.

And the smoke of the incense and the prayers of the saints went up before God out of the angel's hand. The imagery is just so clear that the prayers of the saints are a pleasing aroma to God. Remember what Christ said about the temple when he chased the thieves out?

He said, is it not written, my house shall be called a house of prayer? Of all the things, he doesn't say it's a house of worship, he doesn't say it's a house of righteousness, a house of justice, it is all those things.

But he chooses to use the designation, my house is called a house of prayer. But you are making it a robber's den. God is never bothered by the prayers of his children. Luke 18, verse 1, now he was telling them a parable to show them that at all times they ought to pray and not lose heart.

And being a spiritual discipline, it must come from a sincere heart. Again, in his instructional prayer in Matthew chapter 6, he says, when you pray, you are not to be as the hypocrites, for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners in order to be seen by men.

Truly, I say to you, they have the reward in full. But you, and this is to the disciples, but you, when you pray, go into your inner room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your father who is in secret, and your father who sees in secret will repay you.

Which leads to my third major point of the morning, prayer is more than communication. Now, there's no question prayer is communication with God, as we've seen. It's his desired method of communication from mankind to him.

He communicates to us through his word, but we have more than the transfer of information going on. Prayer is communion with God, and prayer is an essential element of that communion. That's one of the points that John's making in this chapter of his epistle.

As we remember, as Christians, we are children of God, and as such, we have communion with him. That is what is represented in the celebration of the Lord's Supper. That's why it's also called communion.

It is that special relationship that true believers have that permits us to run into the presence of our Heavenly Father, jump up, and sit on his lap, and call him Abba, Daddy. So, how should we pray?

Well, let me clarify something first. There are certainly different types of prayers and different reasons for praying, and we've explored some of those already this morning. In emergency situations, your prayer may simply be, help me Lord, or short prayers of thanksgiving or gratitude for answered prayers.

I can remember rushing down, getting a call from a homicide, that we were rushing to a homicide, red light and the siren on the expressway, and that caused me to pray short, quick prayers. But then there's public or corporate prayers, like a Wednesday evening prayer meeting.

But the focus of what we're looking at this morning is your personal prayer time with your Heavenly Father, because that's absolutely essential for your spiritual health and growth. Our relationship to our Father in Heaven is both communal and personal, and both are important.

And we're not to neglect assembling together of ourselves in corporate worship, but neither are we to neglect our personal relationship with our Father. So, how should we pray? Often and with fervency.

Paul says in Romans 12, verse 9, let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Giving preference to one another in honor. Not lagging behind in diligence.

Fervent in spirit. Serving the Lord. Rejoicing in hope. Persevering in tribulation. Devoted to prayer. And again in Romans 1530, now I urge you brethren by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit to strive together with me in your prayers.

All this means prayer should be a priority. We've explored a lot of scripture. I've quoted more scripture than I normally do in a sermon. That was intentional, because I hope that the words of scripture have more meaning than mine.

The shared number of verses about prayer shows the priority that God places upon it. Notice the priority of the Apostles. In Acts chapter 6, the Apostles said, but select from among you brethren seven men of good reputation, full of spirit and of wisdom, whom we may put in charge of this task.

But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word. And then Paul says it plain as day in 1st Timothy 2, first of all then I urge that in treaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings be made on behalf of all men.

And then he goes on for kings and all who are in authority, etc. That's a lot of scripture talking about prayer. One of the joys of fatherhood is coming home and being greeted by excited children yelling daddy's home.

Or even barging in during a meeting to give you a hug and a kiss. Because that's a picture of our relationship with our Heavenly Father. He never tires of having his children come before him in prayer.

He's never too busy. He never says I'm busy, come back later. We have perfect access to him through the perfect work of Jesus Christ. So don't forget who you are as children of God. Pray often, pray hard, pray from your heart.

You have a Heavenly Father who not only hears your prayers and has the wisdom to answer them perfectly and the power to answer them perfectly. But because of his love for you, he will answer them perfectly.

If you're not a Christian, you're missing out on the love of God and headed for destruction. Oh what peace you often forfeit all because we do not carry everything to God in prayer. Repent of your sin, call upon the name of the Lord and be saved.

And the peace of God that passes all understanding will guard your heart. Let's pray.