A Praying Church

Sermon OverviewScripture Reference: Matthew 7:7-8There is no substitute for prayer, and a church is only as useful as her prayer life. The devil cannot keep God from answering our prayers, so he tries to keep us from asking. But our Lord has commanded us to pray.Adrian Rogers says, “The greatest problem that you have in your life is not unanswered prayer; the greatest problem is unasked prayer.”Matthew 7:7-8 says, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.”These are the words of Jesus—an undeniable, impeccable promise to a praying church.God already knows our needs before we ask. We pray, not to impress or inform Him, but to invite Him into our circumstances. God wants us to abide in Him, and prayer teaches us to depend on Him.This passage reminds us first to ask and express our desires to God.There is no division between spiritual things we should ask for and secular things we shouldn’t. We can’t consider some things too big or too small for God to answer. Whatever our desires may be, if they are something we can ask God’s help for, we should give them to God. Sometimes the answer is direct.Secondly, we’re reminded to seek and expect direction from God.Sometimes, God’s ways are unknown to us, so His answers are different from what we expect. What we ask for is not what God wants us to have. As we seek God, He will direct our prayers over time so that we will ask for the right things.Finally, this passage tells us to knock and exercise determination with God.We cannot give up too easily; we must remember that sometimes, God’s answers are delayed and we must be persistent. We should only stop knocking after we have an answer in hand or in our hearts, or if God says “no.” Until then, we must ask, seek, and continue knocking, inviting God into our lives, one prayer at a time.Apply it to your lifeIs there something in your heart and mind that you’ve been afraid to pray for? Freely ask God, seek Him, and continue knocking. He is faithful to answer, whether directly, differently, or delayed.