Pray Without Ceasing, Part 2

Introduction: The Practical Theme of 1 Thessalonians 4-5 and the Command to Pray Without Ceasing

0:02 Good morning to 1 Thessalonians chapter 5, as we continue our studies in this letter of the Apostle to the Infant Church of the Thessalonians, a letter which, for the sake of our visitors, we'll mention this, we've been studying for several years now, Sunday mornings, working through verse by verse, phrase by phrase, seeking to come to grips with the instruction which God has put here for our edification and blessing.

0:37 Chapters 4 and 5 have their general theme, that which the Apostle announces in the beginning of chapter 4, namely, directions concerning how to walk and to please God, practical instruction for believers as to how they may so live as to bring delight to the heart of the God who has begotten them into His family. One of the great privileges of parenthood is that we are able to walk and to please God. That is the delight that comes when our children conform to that which we know to be to their good and to our honor as parents. Conversely, one of the greatest griefs and pains to the heart of the parent is to see his children walking in a way that is not honorable, and brings reproach not only to the child and sadness to the child, but reproach to the child itself. Not only to the child, but to the children themselves, and to the children themselves that meet these new changes that the Lord has brought to the earth. The entire chapter is going to go through this chapter. And the chapters areつ the parent who's responsible to mold and to shape that life this is true of our God it's one of the reasons why God disciplined David after he forgave his sin he said nevertheless because you've given the enemies occasion to blaspheme to think less of me I must chastise you and so the true child of God just as a true son or daughter wants nothing more than delight the heart of his

2:04 heavenly parent his father in heaven but that longing to delight him needs directed the longing itself is not sufficient there must also be directive and so the scriptures have given us directive and passages such as these are full of practical directives that the child of God may know how to please his heavenly father we are presently studying the second in these three little injunctions beginning with verse 16 of the fifth chapter rejoice always pray without ceasing in everything give thanks simple little words aren't they rejoice always pray without ceasing in everything give thanks yes simple to hear and to remember but not so simple to understand what they mean and far less simple to experience obedience to them in our own lives we've considered together what the scripture means when it says rejoice always and this morning we continue our studies in the little command pray without ceasing since the whole command hinges on whether or not we understand what true prayer is we spent our entire time last Lord's Day morning

Defining True Prayer (Recap from Part 1)

3:26 just asking that question what is true prayer for when the apostle says by the inspiration of the spirit pray without ceasing he had a certain activity in mind he had a definite spiritual activity before him when he wrote the word pray now what was that activity that the apostle had in mind well the answer simply of course is that he had scriptural praying in mind there's much prayer that is not true prayer scripture speaks of vain prayer scripture speaks of prayer that God says turns into prayer and that's what we're going to do today we're going to do a little bit of his stomach you read about it in Isaiah 1 God says I'm sick and tired of your praying they were praying but it wasn't praying it wasn't scriptural pray mark 7 speaks of vain praying vain worship and so it's tremendously important that we understand what is the nature of true prayer and so we tried to come to grips with that last week and I'll just briefly catch the main threads of thought we took the definition of the prayer found in the scripture and we're going to do a little bit of the same thing in the shorter catechism and worked from there prayer is the offering up of our desires unto God in the name of Christ for things agreeable to his will there in a brief compass is the nature

4:51 of true prayer the offering up of our desires the source of true prayer is the heart if our prayers go no deeper than our lips it's not prayer the source of true prayer is the heart the object of prayer the offering up of our desires unto God we don't pray to ourselves we don't pray to one another we don't pray to the saints we don't pray to the virgin it's offering up of our desires unto God the means in the name of Christ as those who come through Jesus Christ those who are joined to him in true faith who come as those who are his blood-washed children and the substance of true prayer for things agreeable to his will true prayer is not just asking for anything anytime when you get a whim you see that would be an encouragement to make brats out of us that's one of the characteristics of a spoiled brat he asked anything anytime of his parents just with his whims well you see God doesn't encourage bratism in the closet it's the offering up of our desires unto God in the name of Christ for things agreeable to his will that's why Jesus said if you abide in me and my words abide in you then you shall ask what you will

6:14 first John chapter 5 says if we ask anything according to his will we know that he hear us we say how in the world can I know if what I'm saying is according to God's will you've got to know God's will well how do you know that by a systematic serious consistent searching of the scriptures and if you're too lazy to do that then don't you try to use prayer as a little cover-all for your laziness and just run off at the mouth in the closet that's not prayer and the person who's unwilling for the discipline of his mind by continual exposure to scripture is saying prayer is not really that important to me for the substance of prayer is the offering up of things agreeable to the will of God then we spend a few minutes considering the different kinds of true prayer there is mental prayer Hannah who prayed her lips moved but she spake not and her prayer was not the same as the prayer of Jesus Christ he said when he asked me to pray I said I prayer was the gushing out of the longing and desires of her heart. There's mental prayer, there's vocal prayer. David said, in the morning, O Lord, thou shalt hear my voice. Then there is ejaculatory prayer, prayer that just leaps out of the heart in a moment. And then there is formal

7:24 or extended prayer, where a person consciously gives himself to a period of prayer. Then there is private prayer. Jesus said, go into your closet. Then there is public prayer, 1 Timothy 2 and Matthew 18. Then there is ordinary prayer, prayer that is based upon daily needs, all those things included in the Lord's prayer. Then there is extraordinary prayer, prayer that is offered in the light of extraordinary need, such as the church when its leaders were imprisoned. It says they gave themselves to unceasing prayer. They even stop their witnessing for a while. They even stop their evangelizing, and they hold up for a time of concerted prayer. So there are all these different kinds of true prayer. And of true prayer in all of its forms, God says to us, pray without ceasing. So much then for what is prayer. Now the

What Does 'Pray Without Ceasing' Mean? Dispelling Misconceptions

8:24 second great question, and this is where we address ourselves this morning. What does it mean to pray without ceasing? What does it mean to pray without ceasing? What does it mean to pray without ceasing?

8:31 Now, the meaning of the word can be determined by its other usages in Holy Scripture. And it's important that we ascertain the meaning of the prayer. There was a sect, a heretical sect early in the history of the church that took this verse, pray without ceasing. It means what it says. So they retreated to a kind of monkish life in which every waking moment was spent in the saying of prayers. Well, you know what the Bible says?

9:04 Well, isn't that what it says? Pray without ceasing? We believe the Bible. That's what we've got to do.

9:10 So, should we all retreat from every other responsibility except praying every moment of every day? Well, the answer to that is so obvious that some have retreated the other direction and said, well, that's ridiculous. Because God commands us to do many other duties. Whatever your hand finds to do, do with all of your might is unto the Lord. It speaks of children, of being obedient to their parents, and fathers nurturing and chasing their children. It speaks of children being obedient to their parents, and fathers nurturing and chasing their children. It speaks of preaching the gospel. It speaks of all kinds of duties. So all that means is keep some kind of a vague, nebulous disposition and attitude of prayer. And these people have said it's not necessary to have any stated times of prayer. It's not necessary to have any discipline of prayer. It's not necessary to have long periods of prayer just so long as you walk in the attitude of prayer. Now, who's right? Both of them claim to proof text

Defining 'Without Ceasing' Through Scripture: Constancy and Regularity

10:06 position from this very verse. Pray without ceasing. So since it's obvious God doesn't mean that all you do all the time is bend your knees and pray or say prayers, all he means is maintain a general attitude of prayer at all times. So you see how important it is that we understand what the word without ceasing means? Very important. And if only we'd cross-reference the use of this word with other passages, I believe we'll come up with an accurate understanding. Will you notice in this same book, chapter one in verse three, the apostle uses the same word. What does it mean without ceasing? Chapter one, verse three. Perhaps we should back up to verse two to catch the train of thought. We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers, remembering without ceasing your work of faith and labor of love and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. Before God, our God and father. Now, in this context, the apostle says that he remembers without ceasing the faith, hope and love of the Thessalonians. Now, hold that in mind. The faith,

11:23 hope and love of the Thessalonians. That's what he remembers without ceasing. It's always in his mind. Now, turn to chapter two and verse 13. And for this cause, we also thank God without ceasing that when you receive. He accepted it not as the word of men, but as the word of God. Well, which is he doing? Is he remembering without ceasing their faith, hope and love? Or is he remembering without ceasing that they received the word of God? He says, the thought that I always remember is when you receive the word, you received it as the word of God. Well, he's contradicting himself. He said a little bit earlier, the thing that I'm constantly remembering. Therefore, he can't be remembering other things.

12:08 This is what I'm constantly remembering is your faith, hope and love. Well, which one? Is it? Well, then to complicate matters, he says in Romans 1, 9, that he's unceasingly remembering the Romans in his prayers. You see, if a fellow tells too many girls he loves them, he's going to get in trouble. Sometime they just might meet and the sweethearts begin to compare notes and too many are claiming him. Well, suppose some Thessalonians came and they met some Roman Christians and they said, say, you know, we're pretty important in Paul's eyes. He said he remembers us without ceasing. Now, wait a minute.

12:46 He said he remembers us without ceasing. Well, which one? You see, if you interpret the word without ceasing as meaning with no interruption, 24 hours a day, 60 minutes an hour, 60 seconds an hour, you end up with just hopeless contradiction. The word does not mean to be occupied with something 60 minutes of the hour, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Rather, it means something which is constant and reoccurring with us. It means something which is constant and reoccurring with us. It means something which is constant and reoccurring with us. It means something with regularity as opposed to something that is sporadic and occurring at irregular intervals.

13:26 And you have a beautiful example of it in 2 Samuel chapter 9 and verse 7. And I use this because if you put that first meaning on it, you see how ridiculous it becomes. 2 Samuel chapter 9 and verse 7. Mephibosheth got it out.

13:47 This lame son of Saul was fearful that if David found him, he would abuse him because of the way Saul had abused David. But instead, David shows kindness to Mephibosheth, and he makes this promise, 2 Samuel 9, 7. And David said unto him, that is to Mephibosheth, fear not, for I will surely show thee kindness for Jonathan. I'm sorry, Jonathan's son. I was thinking it was Saul.

14:16 Jonathan, thy father. For thy father's sake, and I will restore thee all the land of Saul thy father, and thou shalt eat bread at my table continually. Now, did he mean that you're going to come on in and sit there and start at 8 o'clock in the morning eating bread to 9 o'clock, 10 o'clock, 11, 12, 1, 2, 3? No, that's a surefire way to kill a guy. That wouldn't be kindness at all. But what he meant is every time mealtime comes around, you'll be found at my table. And every day at mealtime, bread will be there at my table. So the word without ceasing does not mean without interruption as to point in time, but without a breaking off as to regularity, as to some measure of constancy. So in that sense, it would be accurate for you to say that you come to the table at your home.

15:17 Without ceasing. The regular pattern of your life is to come to that table a couple of times a day. Oh, once in a while you may be somewhere else, but that's part of your life. You dress without ceasing.

15:31 That's a part of everyday life. You sleep without ceasing. You brush your teeth without ceasing. This may not be true much longer, but most of us men shave without ceasing. With the beard fad coming back. And the vogue, as I say, I may have to scratch that out if I preach this again somewhere else in another year or two, but you get the sense in which the word is used. This is what our Lord meant when he said in Luke 18.1, men ought always to pray and not to faint. They ought to pray with constancy, with regularity, and they ought not to leave off the practice of prayer. Romans 12 in verse 12, you have the same thought in a little bit different. Wording. Romans 12 in verse 12, rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer, not praying by fits and starts, meeting God on Monday and then not praying again until Friday, engaging in ejaculatory prayer on Tuesday, but then having the mind so full of the garbage of this world that you never have your heart naturally flow out in prayer.

Practical Duties of Praying Without Ceasing: Stated Seasons

16:50 Again until Thursday. No, no. Continue steadfastly in prayer. Colossians 4 in verse 2, you have the same command. Colossians 4 and verse 2, continue steadfastly in prayer, watching thereunto with thanksgiving. Ephesians 6.18, with all prayer and supplication at all seasons. Now do you get the sense of the meaning? You say, Pastor, why are you spending all that time? Well, this is the word of God, people. And when God says pray without ceasing and you don't set your heart to obey that command, you're sinning against God and grieving and quenching the spirit.

17:36 So this is why it's so vital. But what does God mean by this? Because as a child of God, I want to do what it means when it says pray without ceasing. And if it means that I've got to become one of those you kites, that was the name of the group, then I'll just have to put aside everything and put myself now and pray from eight in the morning to late at night, if that's what God means. But he doesn't mean that, you see. So it's so vital that we understand what this word means without ceasing. And the best way I know to define it is to say it means constancy as opposed to sporadic, regularity as opposed to irregularity. Now, let's seek to move on from a definition of the word to an explanation, some practicality. Practical observations as to how this duty is to be performed. And may I suggest three

18:27 things this morning? In answer to the question, what is it to pray without ceasing? We've defined the words. Now we want to explain the duty. And then I want to close with some encouragements to that duty. This duty involves at least a minimum of these three things. Number one, it means that we must establish and maintain stated, seasons to pray formally and stick to those seasons with bulldog tenacity. Pray without ceasing.

19:05 It means at a minimum that we must establish and maintain some stated times to formally pray. To engage in that kind of prayer that is not just ejaculatory, not just mental, but when we vocally address ourselves to God in terms of our need and the needs of others. Now, we're all creatures of habit. And we have set times for the necessary activities of life. Hence, we all eat with some degree of habit and regularity. We men shave with some degree of habit and regularity. You women, as well as we men and you fellows and girls, you dress with some degree of habit and regularity. You get that bus with some degree of regularity or you don't get it. It doesn't wait for your

19:58 whims. You catch that train. I must get the plane with some degree of regularity. So the totality of life, if it has any meaning, has some degree of order, some degree of structure for the necessities of life. It's life's necessities that we manage to squeeze into the schedule no matter how pressed it is. Now, when as a child of God, I'm convinced of the necessity of prayer for my own spiritual well-being, for the advancement of the kingdom of Christ and for the glory of Christ, then I will establish and maintain stated times to pray. And then I will cling to those times with bulldog tenacity. Are you convinced that constancy in prayer is a duty and is a necessity?

20:53 Then I don't care what your schedule is or what your excuses are. You will make time to pray. And follow me closely. I say this without any fear of being contradicted by facts. Now, I may be contradicted by a lot of smokescreen of excuses, but not by facts. That any of you sitting here this morning who are children of God, who don't have some stated seasons that you mark out to give yourself to prayer, the reason is either you're not convinced of its necessity or you're not exerting the necessary disciplines to keep that time open to pray. There is only two reasons. Nobody came here in his pajamas this morning for prayer. Nobody. 드� mercy 그리옵 pontos.

21:48 Almost no one is here in the pajamas or night gowns. I don't care what went on at night. even if the washing machine broke down and the cellar was flooded, I don't care what you prayed for, I don't care what you prayed for your children, I don't care what you prayed for Dylan's pets, I don't care what what when you asked God for prayer, I don't care how their highlights are, but I'm sure you can start praying. church What the problem was, you made time to get dressed this morning because you felt that was necessary.

22:07 I doubt there are too many of you, unless you're like some people I know who just don't want breakfast. But if you're one of these that can't function right until you get a little something in here and down in here, you've made some time. It was just grabbing a stale old roll and washing it down with some orange juice.

22:25 Because it was necessary. And when you're convinced of the necessity of prayer, you make time. And you don't let little things easily move you from that. Nobody came here in his pajamas and said, Sorry, Pastor, but we had the schedules upset last night.

22:42 And the hour I planned to spend getting my dress ironed, I spent helping my husband clean up the water that got in the basement when the pipe broke on the washing machine. So you'll just have to take his pajamas and all. No, no. That upset in your schedule didn't move you from taking time to get dressed or shave or comb.

23:02 Nobody came here with their tin cans this morning.

23:07 You got time to get the tin cans out of your head?

23:12 But oh, how clever we are, aren't we? Saying, well, you know, the Lord knows. I just didn't have...

23:16 Yeah, He knows all right.

23:19 He knows. He knows that you really don't believe you need to pray. That's what He knows. For He says, pray without ceasing.

23:28 And that means, at a minimum, having established and maintaining some stated seasons to pray and then holding to them with bulldog tenacity. First of all, for ourselves, personally, and for ourselves, corporately. David said, O Lord, in the morning thou shalt hear my voice. In the morning I will direct my prayer unto thee and look up.

23:51 He had a stated time. Daniel. Morning, noon, and evening. Three times a day.

23:56 Stated seasons to pray. He had a good excuse for laying off it, didn't he? Anybody bow down to that God?

24:06 As His custom was, it says. As His custom. As His custom was, He went and He kneeled and He prayed. Nothing was going to stop for Himself.

24:17 We need this for ourselves, for our corporate life. This is why we have a midweek prayer service. A stated time. If we just said, whenever we feel like it, let's come together as Christians and pray.

24:27 That's great. I hope that increasingly, when a few of you happen to be together in each other's homes, that no matter what else you do, you never leave without praying together. Wonderful. But if we just said, let's have a church prayer meeting, whenever we feel like it, it would be no good.

24:44 Because someone would have a reason not to be here, there, there. That's why we have a stated time to pray. And it says of the early church in Acts chapter 2 and verse 42, these continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine in the breaking of bread. The King James says, and in prayers.

25:01 The ASV is more accurate. It has the article, and in the prayers. What prayers? These stated times of prayer.

25:07 When the church agreed, this is the time we'll come together. And it meant then that everyone had to adjust his schedule to gather at the stated times of prayer, to pray.

25:21 Pray without ceasing. It means at a minimum, this kind of maintenance of stated seasons to pray for ourselves individually, to pray together corporately, and then for our families. A word to you fathers. Pray without ceasing must involve daily gathering your family together and praying for them and with them as a family.

25:50 And refusing to let things interfere with that responsibility. I read something in my preparation that touched me along this line. A Sir Thomas Abney had for many years practiced family prayers regularly. He was elected Lord Mayor of London, and the night of his election, he had to be present at a celebration banquet.

26:12 Now, if ever a guy could be excused. Here's a guy. Lord. mayor of London. If ever there'd be a night when he could just say to the wife, now you pray with the kiddies. Come on, we'd say that's a legitimate excuse, wouldn't you? Not so this man. But when the time came for him to call his family together in prayer, having no wish either to be a Pharisee or to give up his practice, he didn't want everybody to know I'm a man of prayer, will you excuse me to pray. He connived a way to accurately and yet very subtly get back with his family for a few minutes. And this is what he said. He said to those around him that he had an important engagement with a very dear friend and they must excuse him for a few minutes. It was most true. His dearest friend was the Lord Jesus and family prayer was an important engagement so he withdrew for a while to the family altar and in that respect prayed without ceasing. I know it's times it means I've got to pull the phone off the hook and stick it under the pillow. I'm determined I'm going to pray with my family that they're not going to have a hypocritical pastor who tells others to pray and tells other fathers to leave their families in prayer and himself has no family worship. And it just seems that there's just demons in the telephone wires and in the doorbell when I'm determined to gather my family to pray after supper each night. All these are hindrances

27:33 but when we're convinced that the command comes pray without ceasing and that means not only stated signs for myself individually stated times to corporately pray with the church but to pray with my family then if necessary if I've got to leave a Lord Mayor's banquet so be it pray without ceasing. Oh you say that's extreme. Well blessed extremism may God bring it upon us again for when lands were filled with men of this kind of principle they raised children with that kind of principle. And when a kid sees his dad come from a Lord Mayor's banquet to pray you know what that father's saying by his example. Listen son when you get to be a daddy let nothing interfere with your headship in prayer. See preacher could preach about it all night long and all day long till blue in the face but when a kid has a dad who sets that kind of an example it's more eloquent in all the exhortations of the preacher. Are you giving that to your son and your daughter? That's part of the command pray without ceasing.

Practical Duties of Praying Without Ceasing: Ejaculatory Prayer

28:39 Pray without ceasing.

28:43 That's the minimum. Secondly not only must we establish and maintain stated times to formally pray and hold to them with bulldog tenacity but we must cultivate the art of non-formal ejaculatory prayer. Cultivate the art of just to use the words of that dear scotch woman who used to be over at the bible school shoot up a volley to the Lord. Cultivate the art of shooting up a volley to the Lord at every opportunity.

29:12 A group of preachers were together discussing this text. What does it mean to pray without ceasing? There was a cleaning woman over in the corner and she says gentlemen I think I know and they were quite surprised and they turned and said why woman her name was Susan do you know how to pray always? I hope so said Susan but said the minister you have so much to attend to. How can you find time to pray always? Oh said Susan the greater the variety I have to attend to the more I'm assisted to pray. In the morning when I open my eyes I pray oh Lord open my eyes that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law. While I'm dressing I pray oh Lord may I be clothed in the righteousness of thy dear son and adorned with the garment of salvation.

29:59 When I'm washing myself I pray oh Lord may I be washed in that fountain open for sin and uncleanness. When I go to kindle the fire for my mistress I pray oh Lord kindle the fire of sacred love in this cold heart of mine and while I'm sweeping the room I pray Lord may my heart be swept clean of all of its abominations and so gentlemen I'm praying all the day. That's it. Pray without ceasing.

30:32 Cultivating the art of ejaculatory prayer.

30:37 Letting the occasions of life turn the mind to heavenly things. So as she opens her physical eyes she prays open the spiritual eyes. One dear servant of God I shall never forget said that his first thought upon rising as he lay upon the bed before his feet ever hit the floor was oh Lord may this bed be the altar and my body and my life be the sacrifice and I offer it up to you afresh that this day all of my powers may be engaged in doing your blessed will. That's cultivating the art of ejaculatory prayer.

31:12 Lifting up the heart I was talking with someone yesterday and I was surprised because I thought I was the only queer one whose mind would work this way who said that she found great blessing in letting cars that were similar to people she know be the occasion of praying for that person. I used to do this by the hours when I was in the itinerant ministries. I drove along the highway I always observe what kind of cars people drive. I guess as a pastor you're more cultivated to this and I can always tell them we've got visitors or someone's gotten a new car that I'm not used to yet. I just look out there now and I can say Gene Podolsky's car, there's the Johnson's car, there's the Gergeles' car, the Nixon's car. And as you drive along you see that Plymouth that looks like you, you pray for them. And then you see that right where you pray for them. Cultivating this.

32:00 Just seeking to have these little things that trigger the mind upward and cause us to lay hold of God in prayer for one another. Cultivating the art of ejaculatory prayer. Now do you see what will happen if you do this? Do you think the garbage of jealousy and jealous thoughts can be stewing in your mind when you're shooting up volleys to the Lord?

32:25 Thoughts of suspicion thoughts of suspicion. And bitterness or hurt or all of these other foul expressions of our fleshly corruption. You think they can exist in a heart that is going out to the Lord like this now? Pray without ceasing. Cultivate that art of ejaculatory prayer. And the mind and heart cluttered up with the garbage of pride and lust and hurt will not give forth the fragrance of ejaculatory prayer.

Practical Duties of Praying Without Ceasing: Avoiding Hindrances

33:00 Pray without ceasing. That's what it means. And then thirdly, if we're to take the command seriously it will mean that we not only establish and maintain stated times to pray cultivate the art of ejaculatory prayer but we will learn to avoid as a destructive enemy any influence which causes the spirit of prayer to wane. Pray without ceasing.

33:31 That means that anything that will keep me from so praying formally or with these ejaculatory prayers and petitions anything that will dampen the spirit of prayer, any influence from within or from without that dampens that spirit of prayer must be looked upon as a destructive enemy and dealt with accordingly. According to the state of heart and mind which causes a man to be at ease in the presence of God is a sensitive thing. Listen to the words of one old servant of Christ. When we walk unevenly we grow shy of God. Isn't that beautiful?

34:10 When we walk unevenly we grow shy of God.

34:16 You know what he's saying? You know what it's like to be shy of someone? You don't want to be around you feel uneasy? When you walk unevenly you feel uneasy in the presence of God.

34:28 Our mouths are shut and our prayers choked in the utterance. Our access to God in prayer cannot be carried on so cheerfully unless we walk orderly and peaceably. There it is. You see you can't separate the duties of the Christian life. You can't live shoddily and pray powerfully any more than you can pray powerfully and live shoddily. You see they're all tied together. You can't separate them and this is where we continually get into trouble. We like to play tricks with God. We say boy I sure would love the blessing of a direct line to heaven so that when my need is obvious I can lay hold of God with confidence and with faith and bring to bear divine pressure upon that need. Oh we love the benefits of a clear line of access but we don't want to pay the price of walking carefully before God and man in the highways and byways. Well you see you can't have your cake and eat it too. No you can't.

35:29 And why is it that so few of us pray so poorly? It's because we live so shoddily. Chapter and verse? Alright. Take this very practical one from 1 Peter chapter 3. Husbands be not bitter against your wives. Dwell with them according to knowledge. And what reason does he give to enforce this?

35:54 That your what? Be not hindered of all the reasons he could have given. Isn't that a strange one that he gives? Look at it now. 1 Peter chapter 3 verse 7. 1 Peter 3 verse 7. The word here is not be bitter. It's in another context that that's used.

36:22 That's in Colossians. Ye husbands in like manner dwell with your wives according to knowledge giving honor unto the woman as unto the weaker vessels as being joint heirs of the grace of life to the end that your prayers be not hindered. He says a man who refuses to take pains to understand the difference in the constitution of a woman and a man. And make the necessary accommodations. That's the word I want. The necessary accommodations to her womanhood. Who becomes churlish. Who becomes indifferent. Who becomes as it were reactionary to her more volatile emotional ups and downs. The man who does not dwell with her in tenderness according to his knowledge of her as the weaker vessel. When he bows his knees to pray. He doesn't pray with power. You can't

37:18 live.

37:20 With static in your relationship to your wife. And have an unstatic-y relationship with God.

37:29 You can't live like this Peter says and pray effectively here. Now all that is is one application of the principle. That's all Peter's doing. He's taking the principle that the way I live affects the way I pray. Even in this whole matter of a husband and wife as they live together day by day. Now if it applies there it applies to how you kids react to mom and dad. You say well Lord don't hear my prayers. Well maybe you got too much static in the way you grumbled. Mom and dad asked you to do what they did. See? Well don't go and hear my prayers.

38:10 Well maybe if you made that bed in the morning cheerfully instead of grumbling when you kneel by that bed the Lord start hearing your prayers. Huh? Could it be? Maybe. Maybe that's the trouble.

38:20 I've had teenagers come to me and say Lord don't hear my prayers. I pray and God doesn't answer. Maybe your prayers are hindered. You've been sassy to mom and dad. Maybe mouthing them off to the teacher. I've had college kids and they've done work. Done work with me all those promises. I plead them. I claim them. Nothing happens. Maybe you're just too lazy. You're not doing with all your might what your hand finds to do and you're skipping through those classes in a shoddy way. Dishonoring Christ with a lazy mind. Spending too much time in bull sessions.

38:55 You can't do that and then claim his promises.

39:00 Doesn't work. Maybe you've taken too many liberties on that Friday night date. That's why you can't prevail in prayer on Saturday morning. You see this is all tied together.

39:09 And if we would pray without ceasing then we've got to take seriously the verse we'll hit at verse 22 comes down the end of the paragraph. Avoid, abstain from every form of evil. If we would pray without ceasing there must be this abstinence from evil.

39:26 Now to be more specific this touches our actions. We've dealt with that. But even deeper than that it touches our attitudes. Psalm 66 18 If I had regarded iniquity where? In my heart the Lord would not hear me. Jesus said in Mark 11 25 when you stand praying forgive for if ye do not forgive neither will your heavenly Father forgive.

39:53 And so if we would pray without ceasing not only must our actions be governed by the holy precepts of God and all deflections confessed and put beneath the blood but our attitudes must be right. Those sinful attitudes of unforgiveness Jesus says must be dealt with. The terrible sin of unbelief, pride and self sufficiency, indifference all of these attitudes must be dealt with and they must be looked upon as enemies to this matter of obedience to pray without ceasing. So very briefly at least this is involved. Pray without ceasing. Establish and maintain stated times to pray. Cling to them with bulldog tenacity for yourself individually, with God's people, corporately, with your family. Secondly, cultivate the art of ejaculatory prayer. Avoid

Encouragements to Constant Prayer and the Role of the Holy Spirit

40:50 as a destructive enemy any influence that causes the spirit of prayer to wane both in actions and in attitudes. And now let me close this morning with some suggestions as to encouragements to perform this duty. The God who says pray without ceasing doesn't set that command out there in isolation. But just like a beautiful gem is set in a context that will enhance its beauty, whether it's black velvet or a peculiar arrangement of light, so that command is set in a context that should draw out our hearts to say, oh Lord teach me how to. What are the strong encouragements to this duty of constancy in prayer? Let me suggest first of all the strong invitations of God himself. It's God himself who says in Hebrews 4.16, let us come boldly to the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. It's God who invites

41:52 you to pray. You know it's a terrible thing when a dear friend someone you thought was a dear friend, disregards an invitation you've given to some particular event. You know what it's like perhaps to plan a party or plan as some have had to do for their children to plan the wedding and the reception and you put RSVP and someone you thought was a real friend, that's why you invited them and they don't care enough to even respond to your invitation. How does that make you feel?

42:23 You say, boy they sure don't regard my friendship as worth much. The great eternal God who owes us nothing and who gains nothing by us has said, come to the throne of grace. Come! What in encouragement that God himself he himself has bid thee pray as the hymn writer says therefore will not say thee nay. If he's bid us come he's bid us come not to mock us any more than if I bid you come to reception. I haven't come to feed you shredded napkins. If he says come, it's because he wants to give as we come. So there is the strong invitation of God himself. Secondly there are the sure promises of God himself. How do you begin to enumerate them? Ask and it shall be given you. Seek and you shall find. Call unto

43:14 me and I will answer thee. Ask what ye will and it shall be done. If he being evil know how to give good gifts how much more shall your heavenly father. Call unto me in the day of trouble and I will answer thee and I will deliver thee. All these great promises. What's God put them there for? He hadn't just put them there so the Christian bookstores can make a little money having plaques that have promises on them. He's put them there that encouraging us to come when we come before him we might have promises to plead before him in our praying. And then there is not only the invitation of God himself the sure promises of God but the solid encouragement in example of answered prayer. One picture is worth a thousand words. True. And what is the history of the Bible but in great measure the record of answered prayer. Moses

44:09 prayed and God spared a nation Hannah prayed and God gives the nation a prophet and a judge the disciples pray and God opens a jail for their leader the servant of Isaac prays and God guides him to get a wife for his master. Jacob prays and God changes him from a wily heel snatcher into a prince with God. Elijah prays and the heavens are shut off. Elijah prays and the heavens are open. What's all that put there for? Well James tells us Elias was a man made of the same stuff that we're made of. He prayed and God did this and he says the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. You need not be a prophet. You need not be a great figurehead in the history of God's people but if you're joined to Jesus Christ and walking before him as a righteous man or woman then the sure promises of God are yours to plead and to claim before him and God has encouraged that. So with all these encouragements his invitation his promises, the encouragement of example, God is saying pray without ceasing. But in spite of all of that, some of you won't pray you know why? Because you've never been born of the spirit who is the spirit of grace and of supplication. He's called the spirit

45:34 of grace and supplication in Zechariah 12.10 and Galatians 4 tells us how this works. That passage says, and because ye are sons, those who have been born into the family of God, he hath sent forth the spirit of his son into our hearts crying, Abba Father, Daddy the sense of intimate access on a filial family basis the reason why some of you find no delight in prayer whatsoever is you've never been born of the spirit and you know nothing of the spirit of adoption that makes you feel at ease in the presence of God. the father. You've seen nothing of the need, that deep need you have to go to the throne of grace continually, to obtain the grace and the mercy you so desperately need, but to which you are blind. And so you can't obey this command, pray without ceasing till first of all the command repent and believe the gospel is confronted and obeyed. But for many of you who are the children of God, will you take seriously this command? I must confess that it's searched me out, because you see, you're not dealing with objective truth here, that you can preach about with some measure of enthusiasm, even though you may not be walking in the light of it. But when

46:55 you're talking about something like this and how I've had to see and face afresh, how quickly I allow the slightest thing to move me from my stated times with God. How easy it is to let the heart begin to be an accumulation of the garbage of this world system that keeps down the naturalness of just constantly sending up those requests to the Lord. May God help us, that as the command has come to us, pray without ceasing. We shall take it seriously, and by the grace of God we'll walk in the light of it. And the fragrance that begins to go out from your life in new measure and from this assembly in new measure, will be witness of God's smile of approval upon a people who are seeking by His grace to pray, without ceasing. Let us look to God in prayer together.