Listen closely as Adrian Rogers shares how prayer is part of God’s kingdom work.
God loves us so much that God gives us the privilege of participating in his kingdom work through prayer. Now, God can work without our prayers, but we cannot work without God, and it is prayer that causes us to depend upon him. If God just simply blessed us without our asking, that would teach us to live life independently from God.
You see, God wants you to abide with him, and that’s the reason God has taught us to pray, to invite him to take control of our lives.
Welcome to Love Worth Finding, featuring the profound teaching and practical insights of Pastor Adrian Rogers. There is no substitute for prayer, and a church is only as useful as her prayer life. The devil can’t keep God from answering our prayers, so he tries to keep us from asking.
But our Lord has commanded us to pray. Pastor Adrian Rogers said, the greatest problem that you have in your life is not unanswered prayer, the greatest problem is unasked prayer. If you have your Bible, turn to Matthew chapter 7, as Adrian Rogers shares what it means to be a praying church.
We’ve been talking about the kind of church that we ought to be, the kind of church that I’ve tried to teach you to be in these years that God has given me the wonderful privilege of being your pastor. This morning I want you to open God’s Word, if you will, to Matthew chapter 7, and in a moment we’re going to look at verses 7 and 8. I know they are very familiar to you, but the church that I want to be talking about today, our church needs to be a praying church.
We’ve talked about a unified church and a steadfast church and other things, but today a praying church. Bellevue will be no greater, no better, no more useful than her prayer life. And a prayer life is not going to be any better than your life because you are the church.
And don’t ask yourself, is Bellevue a praying church? Ask yourself this question, am I a praying Christian? If you could ask the Lord Jesus Christ for anything you wanted, what would you ask Him for?
Would you say, Lord, teach me to preach? Or, Lord, teach me to sing? Or, Lord, teach me to lead?
The disciples asked this, Lord, teach us to pray. And the Lord gave them some words here, and I want you to listen to them. This is Matthew chapter 7, verses 7 and 8.
Ask, and it shall be given you. Seek, and ye shall find. Knock, and it shall be opened unto you, for every one that asketh receiveth, and he that seeketh findeth, and to him that knocketh, it shall be opened.
These are not the words of Adrian. These are the words of Jesus. Undeniable, impeccable promise.
Our Lord says we are to ask, to seek, and to knock. When we ask, that speaks of our desires. When we seek, that speaks of God’s direction.
And when we knock, that speaks of determination. And what we need to do is to bring desire, direction and determination together into a burning laser point to get our prayers answered before God. Now, I want to tell you, folks, listen to me.
The greatest problem that you have in your life is not unanswered prayer. The greatest problem is unoffered prayer, unasked prayer. The Bible says in James chapter 4 and verse 2, we have not because we ask not.
You see, not to pray is not only to miss a blessing. It is rebellious. Our Lord has commanded us to pray.
Quickly jot these scriptures down. Luke 18 verse 1, and he says, hear that men ought always to pray. Now, who said that?
Jesus said that. Mark chapter 14 and verse 38, Jesus said, watch and pray. Watch and pray.
And the Apostle Paul said in Philippians chapter 4 verse 6, be careful for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your request be made known under God. There’s no substitute for prayer, not enthusiasm, not eloquence, not energy. There is no substitute for intercession and for prayer.
And the reason that many of us fail, the reason that many of us are poverty stricken in our spiritual life is, we’ve never learned to pray. Why does God ask us to pray? It’s a good question.
Isn’t God good? Doesn’t God want to do good things? And doesn’t God know everything?
So why should we pray? I’ll put in an ancillary verse over there in Matthew 6, we’re in Matthew 7, go back to Matthew 6. Jesus said here in verses 7 and 8, but when you pray, use not vain repetitions as the heathen do, for they think they should be heard for the much speaking.
Be not therefore like unto them. Now watch this, for your father knoweth what things you have need of before you ask him. That’s very interesting.
God knows before you ask. Well, that just begs the question then, why should we ask? Well, number one, not to impress God.
Don’t use vain repetition. You don’t have to be a junior-sized Shakespeare in order to pray with your little flowery praises. We don’t pray to impress God.
And we don’t pray to inform God. God already knows what things we need. He knows everything that you need.
And there’s nothing you can tell him that he does not already know. So if you don’t pray to impress God and you don’t pray to inform God, why do you pray? Do you pray to instruct God?
Absolutely not. Prayer is not some way where you bend God’s will to fit your will. You don’t instruct God in prayer.
Why do we pray? To invite God. To invite God to be a part of our lives so we can delight ourselves in the Lord.
The Bible says there in 2 Corinthians chapter 6 verse 1 that we are workers together with Him. God loves us so much that God gives us the privilege of participating in His kingdom work through prayer. Now, God can work without our prayers, but we cannot work without God, and it is prayer that causes us to depend upon Him.
God does not want us to live lives independent of Him. If God just simply blessed us without our asking, what would that do? That would teach us to live life independently from God.
But Jesus said, if you abide in Me and My Word abides in you, then you’ll ask what you will, and it should be done unto you. You see, God wants you to abide with Him, and that’s the reason God has taught us to pray, to invite Him to take control of our lives. Now, listen very carefully.
The devil cannot keep God from answering, so what will he do? He will endeavor to keep you from asking. Think about it now.
The devil can’t keep God from answering, so what will he do? He will try to keep us from asking. Now, Lord, in this scripture says ask, seek, and knock.
Now, three factors I want to give you. Factor number one, the desire factor. Ask and express your desires to God.
So if you have a desire in your heart, what things serve you desire when you pray, believe that you receive them and you shall have them. Now, the Bible says, Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desire of your heart. Now, don’t get the idea that there are spiritual things that you can ask for and secular things that you cannot ask for.
The Bible never divides life between the sacred and the secular. With God, every task is a holy task. Every day is a holy day.
Can you imagine Jesus dividing his life into the sacred and the secular? Can you imagine Jesus saying, Now, Lord, Father, when I preach, I want anointing, but the rest of the time, I’ll do it myself. No, you see, in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your request be made known into God.
A good test as to whether you should desire it or whether you should do it is, can you ask God to help you? Or can you ask God to do it through you? Whatever you desire, listen, whatever you desire, tell God, ask.
We say, What if I want the wrong thing? Tell Him. Say, Lord, I want the wrong thing.
Have mercy upon me, O God. Fix my wanter. That’s right.
Listen, you can’t hide it from God. If you want it, He already knows it, doesn’t He? So tell Him.
Say, O God, this is what I want, and I know it’s not what you want. Say, Have mercy upon me. But friend, pray about everything.
The responsibility for asking is ours. The responsibility for giving is God’s. Now, you just ask.
Learn to ask God for whatever you want. You see, sometimes the answer to prayer is direct. And I want you to learn these three words today, direct, different and delayed.
All right, sometimes you ask God, and the answer is absolutely direct. I was driving to a revival meeting one time, and this was in Florida, and I had preached Sunday morning at Merritt Island, and I was going over to Wachula, Florida. I was out there in driving my automobile, going along just as happy as I could be, driving about 65 miles an hour, when my car stopped running.
It didn’t sputter, it just stopped running. The engine was not running at all. I put it in neutral, coasted as far as I could.
I’m out there all by myself on this road, and the car won’t run. I did what everybody does. I got out and looked under the hood.
I mean, there’s the engine. It hadn’t fallen out. What’s wrong with that car, I don’t know.
But I got in, and I cranked, and I cranked, and I cranked, and I cranked, and it would not even sputter. But finally, my battery was going… And I said, well, worse than a car not running now, I’m going to have a dead battery.
Then I thought, Adrian, have you asked God? I got out of that car, and I… Now, I know this sounds silly, but I laid my hand on the hood.
And I said, Lord, if you are the great physician, you’re also the great mechanic. And I asked you in the name of Jesus, because I was going to a revival meeting. In the name of Jesus, fix my car.
I got in, turned the key, vroom. The engine just roared. You say, well, that was a coincidence.
You believe what you believe, I believe what I believe. But friends, sometimes the answer is direct. We ask God, and God answers our prayer.
Now, remember, Satan cannot keep God from answering, so he’ll try to keep you from asking. Now, he cannot answer unless we ask. Now, that’s the first factor, the desire factor.
What things have you desire? The desire factor is ask and express your desires to God. Now, the second factor is the direction factor.
Seek and expect direction from God, because there’s sometimes the things that we ask God for, and they’re not as well. Why did he say seek? Because God sometimes wants to redirect our prayers to his will.
Asking and seeking have to be linked together. Sometimes God’s ways are unknown to us. Sometimes we’re asking for one thing, and we need to be seeking another thing, and so we keep asking and keep seeking until God directs our prayer, if we’re not asking for the right thing the first time.
Have you ever thanked God for unanswered prayer? It’s reported that Mrs. Billy Graham said, I thank God that he does not answer every prayer of mine. Had he done so, I would have married the wrong man five different times.
Sometimes we ask God for things, and it’s not what God wants us to have, so we have to keep seeking. You see, friends, sometimes the answers are direct. Sometimes the answers are different.
The Apostle Paul had a thorn in the flesh, and you read about it over there in 2 Corinthians chapter 12, verses 8 and following. And he said, Oh, God, take away this thorn. Three seasons of prayer, he prayed.
But God said, No, I’ve got something different for you, and I’ve got something better for you. My strength will be made perfect in your weakness. I’m going to give you a special anointing, a special power.
Now, so, what do we do? We ask and express our desires to God. Then we seek and experience direction from God.
And then thirdly, we knock. And when we knock, we exercise determination with God. Sometimes we’re asking in the will of God.
Sometimes we’re asking with specificity for what God wants to give us. But we give up too easily. To knock implies determination in the Greek language.
And this was written, as you know, in Greek. The word is knock and keep on knocking. Knock, knock, knock upon heaven’s door.
Now, I said that sometimes the answers are direct. You ask God for something, there it is. I love those kind of answers.
But sometimes the answers are different. You ask God for one thing, and God in love does not give it, but He gives you something better, but different. But sometimes the answers are not direct, and they’re not different, they are delayed.
There seems to be some impediment. Something there, we’ve asked God, we sought God, but the door is closed. And so God says, knock, knock, keep on knocking on heaven’s door.
That’s very interesting. Why would God tell us to do that? Why doesn’t God just give us what we ask?
Jesus told a story of an unjust judge. There was a widow. She had a good case, but this crooked judge would not answer.
He didn’t have time for her, and she just kept on pastoring him. And notice if you will here in Luke chapter 18 and verse 4. And he would not for a while, but afterward he said to himself, though I fear not God, nor regard man.
What a hard-hearted guy this was. Didn’t fear God, had no respect for man. Listen to what he says.
Yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me. And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust judge sayeth, and shall not God avenge his own elect, which cried day and night unto him, though he bear long with them. I tell you that he will avenge them speedily.
Now what’s all of this about? Is he saying God is like a perverted wicked judge? No!
But what he’s saying, if an unconcerned judge will hear persistent prayer, then keep on knocking. That’s taught… we see it all in the Bible.
Over there in Matthew chapter 15, there’s a story of a Canaanite woman. The Bible calls her a Syrophoenician woman. She was from Syria and Phoenicia.
That is, she was a Canaanite. She had a daughter that was demon possessed. She came to Jesus and she said, Jesus, I’ve got a big need.
My daughter has a demon. Do something for her. Do you know what Jesus said to her?
I haven’t come to you Canaanites. I’ve come to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Do you think I’m going to take the children’s bread and give it to dogs?
Now suppose Jesus talked to you that way. You’d say, huh, some messiah he is, some caring person he is. Call me a dog.
Said he doesn’t care about me and my daughter. She’s demon possessed. You know what that woman did?
She said, that’s right, Lord. You described me perfectly. I’m a Gentile dog, but I’m a dog under your table, and I’m going to stay there until I get a crumb from you.
Jesus’ heart broke. He wasn’t being cruel to that woman. He was trying to teach her to knock, to persist, and he said, woman, great is your faith.
Great. You’ll have what you ask. You see, she just continued to knock.
Elijah was a prophet of God in the Old Testament. God had shut up heaven that it would not rain. For three years, it didn’t rain.
The leaves were shriveled. The animals were dying. It was a judgment of God upon the land.
But then Elijah and the people prayed for rain for the glory of God. Elijah went up on the top of Mount Carmel. I’ve been there many times.
And he looked out and he sent a servant. He said, go see if you see any clouds. He went, nothing.
He prayed some more. He said, go again. He went, nothing.
He prayed some more, go again. He went, nothing. On the seventh time, the servant came back and said, I see a little cloud about the size of a man’s hand.
Elijah said, there’s going to be an abundance of rain. Friend, we need to keep on praying until God rains down upon us. And here was a man who knocked and kept on knocking.
And that’s what we need to do. If God doesn’t answer your prayer, just keep praying. Well, that brings up a question.
How long should we continue to pray? Let me tell you how long you continue to pray. How long you continue to knock.
You continue to knock until you have the answer in your hand or in your heart or until God says no. If you have the answer in your hand, you don’t have to keep asking. Now, you may have the answer in your heart.
God says, I have heard your prayer. Wait upon me. I had a deep prayer request in my life one time concerned some of my loved ones, and I tried again to tell God how to do it, but he would not let me instruct him.
But one day he said to me, Adrian, you trust me. I’m going to take care of it. I have heard your prayer.
Now, it took a while for that prayer to come to me, but I had the answer in my heart. Now, sometimes God would just simply say, No. Why?
Because he doesn’t love us? No, because he does love us. Three of God’s greatest prophets in the Bible asked God to kill him.
God said, No. God said, No, I’m not going to do that. That’s not what you need.
You ask, you seek, you knock, you pray until you have the answer in your hand, in your heart, until God says, No. The answer may be direct, the answer may be different, the answer may be delayed, but God answers, pray.
What an encouragement from Adrian Rogers today on Love Worth Finding. You know, it’s one of our great honors to do exactly what we’ve heard about today, and that is come alongside you and pray with you and for you. If you can go to our website and scroll down to our prayer wall, you’ll find an option there to submit a prayer request or pray for others.
This resource is one of our favorite ways to keep the ministry and the community praying continually for one another’s needs. So go to that website lwf.org/radio and scroll down to our prayer wall today. Now if you’d like to order a copy of today’s message in its entirety, call 1-877-LOVE-GOD.
Mention the title, A Praying Church, when you call to order. You can also go online or write to us at Love Worth Finding, Box 38600, Memphis, Tennessee, 38183. Is there something in your heart and your mind that you’ve been afraid to pray for?
Freely ask God, seek Him, continue knocking. He is faithful to answer, whether directly, differently or delayed. We’re so glad you studied in God’s Word with us today, and we hope you’ll tune in next time for more from Adrian Rogers right here on Love Worth Finding.
A listener reached out with these encouraging words, This message is so important to hear. We are in such need of God’s pure truth. I think Love Worth Finding is very rewarding to so many.
I pray that you keep honoring our Lord in faithfulness. Well, at the Ministry of Love Worth Finding, it is our desire to inspire and equip you with messages and resources for your daily Christian walk. And to thank you for your support right now, we would love to send you a copy of A Final Charge to the Church.
Final words are seen as some of the most impactful and important thoughts we could ever share. Prior to his retirement, Pastor Rogers shared one last series to encourage the Church of Jesus Christ to be a more unified, steadfast, spirit-filled and Bible-centered body. Would you call us and request a copy when you send a gift?
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