Beloved, I am glad to share with you today on the afflictions or sadness. This situation may happen and you will see why. Then we shall share on the causes of failure in prayer.
Through our faith in our Lord Jesus Christ who was sent by the heavenly Father, in order to save us, our sufferings today should not be compared to the upcoming glory for us.
Let’s us bear the afflictions through perseverance, obedience, and confidence in our redeemer Jesus-Christ.
A-The afflictions
- General references:
Exodus 3 :7 And God said, Truly, I have seen the grief of my people in Egypt, and their cry because of their cruel masters has come to my ears; for I have knowledge of their sorrows;
Job 14:1 As for man, the son of woman, his days are short and full of trouble.
Psalms 119:50, 143 50 This is my comfort in my trouble; that your sayings have given me life. 143 Pain and trouble have overcome me: but your teachings are my delight.
Isaiah 63:9 It was no sent one or angel, but he himself who was their saviour: in his love and in his pity he took up their cause, and he took them in his arms, caring for them all through the years.
Romans 8:18 I am of the opinion that there is no comparison between the pain of this present time and the glory which we will see in the future.
2 Corinthians 4:8 Troubles are round us on every side, but we are not shut in; things are hard for us, but we see a way out of them;
2-afflictions often turn into blessings
Job 5:17 Truly, that man is happy who has training from the hand of God: so do not let your heart be shut to the teaching of the Ruler of all.
Job 23:10 For he has knowledge of the way I take; after I have been tested I will come out like gold.
Job 34: 31 For he has never said to God: I was chastened and will sin no more.
Revelation 7:14 And I said to him, My lord, you have knowledge. And he said to me, These are they who came through the great testing, and their robes have been washed and made white in the blood of the Lamb.
3-they come from God
Deuteronomy 8:15 Who was your guide through that great and cruel waste, where there were poison-snakes and scorpions and a dry land without water; who made water come out of the hard rock for you;
Ruth 1:20 And she said to them, Do not let my name be Naomi, but Mara, for the Ruler of all has given me a bitter fate.
Job 6:4 For the arrows of the Ruler of all are present with me, and their poison goes deep into my spirit: his army of fears is put in order against me.
Job 16:12 I was in comfort, but I have been broken up by his hands; he has taken me by the neck, shaking me to bits; he has put me up as a mark for his arrows.
Psalms 66:11 You let us be put in prison; chains were put on our legs.
Psalms 90:7 We are burned up by the heat of your passion, and troubled by your wrath.
Psalms 102:10 9 I have had dust for bread and my drink has been mixed with weeping:
Ezekiel 24:16 Son of man, see, I am taking away the desire of your eyes by disease: but let there be no sorrow or weeping or drops running from your eyes.
4-they come from God’s servants and prophets
Ezekiel 24:18 So in the morning I was teaching the people and in the evening death took my wife; and in the morning I did what I had been ordered to do.
1 Corinthians 4:11 Even to this hour we are without food, drink, and clothing, we are given blows and have no certain resting-place;
2 Corinthians 6:5 In blows, in prisons, in attacks, in hard work, in watchings, in going without food;
2 Corinthians 11:23 Are they servants of Christ? (I am talking foolishly) I am more so; I have had more experience of hard work, of prisons, of blows more than measure, of death.
2 Corinthians 12:7 And because the revelations were so very great, in order that I might not be overmuch lifted up, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, one sent from Satan to give me pain.
1 Thessalonians 3:3 So that no man might be moved by these troubles; because you see that these things are part of God’s purpose for us.
5-they last longer
Psalms 6:3 My soul is in bitter trouble; and you, O Lord, how long?
Psalms 13:1 Will you for ever put me out of your memory, O Lord? will your face for ever be turned away from me?
Psalms 35:17 Lord, how long will you be looking on? take my soul from their destruction, my life from the lions.
Psalms 79:5 How long, O Lord? will you be angry for ever? will your wrath go on burning like fire?
Psalms 804 O Lord God of armies, how long will your wrath be burning against the rest of your people?
Psalms 89:46 How long, O Lord, will you Keep yourself for ever from our eyes? how long will your wrath be burning like fire?
Psalms 90:13 Come back, O Lord; how long? let your purpose for your servants be changed.
Psalms 94:3 How long will sinners, O Lord, how long will sinners have joy over us?
Habakkuk 1:2 How long, O Lord, will your ears be shut to my voice? I make an outcry to you about violent behaviour, but you do not send salvation.
Zechariah 1:12 Then the angel of the Lord, answering, said, O Lord of armies, how long will it be before you have mercy on Jerusalem and on the towns of Judah against which your wrath has been burning for seventy years?
6-true believers don’t lose courage during sadness
2 Corinthians 4:1, 6 1 For this reason, because we have been made servants of this new order, through the mercy given to us, we are strong: 6 Seeing that it is God who said, Let light be shining out of the dark, who has put in our hearts the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
Galatians 6:9 And let us not get tired of well-doing; for at the right time we will get in the grain, if we do not give way to weariness.
Ephesians 3:13 For this reason it is my prayer that you may not become feeble because of my troubles for you, which are your glory.
Hebrews 12:5-6 5 And you have not kept in mind the word which says to you as to sons, My son, do not make little of the Lord’s punishment, and do not give up hope when you are judged by him; 6 For the Lord sends punishment on his loved ones; everyone whom he takes as his son has experience of his rod.
Revelation 2:3 And you have the power of waiting, and have undergone trouble because of my name, without weariness.
7-the saints drink the cup of suffering
Psalms 73:10 For this reason they are full of bread; and water is ever flowing for them.
Psalms 80:5 You have given them the bread of weeping for food; for their drink you have given them sorrow in great measure.
Psalms 102:9-10 9 I have had dust for bread and my drink has been mixed with weeping: 10 Because of your passion and your wrath, for I have been lifted up and then made low by you.
Matthew 20:22 But Jesus made answer and said, You have no idea what you are requesting. Are you able to take of the cup which I am about to take? 23 They say to him, We are able.
Matthew 26:39 And he went forward a little, and falling down on his face in prayer, he said, O my Father, if it is possible, let this cup go from me; but let not my pleasure, but yours be done.
John 18:11 Then Jesus said to Peter, Put back your sword: am I not to take the cup which my Father has given to me?
B -the purging influence of sadness
Job 23:10-12 10 For he has knowledge of the way I take; after I have been tested I will come out like gold. 11 My feet have gone in his steps; I have kept in his way, without turning to one side or to the other. 12 I have never gone against the orders of his lips; the words of his mouth have been stored up in my heart.
Psalms 66:10 For you, O God, have put us to the test: testing us by fire like silver.
Isaiah 1:25 And my hand will again be on you, washing away what is unclean as with soap, and taking away all your false metal;
Isaiah 48::10 See, I have been testing you for myself like silver; I have put you through the fire of trouble.
Jeremiah 9:6 There is wrong on wrong, deceit on deceit; they have given up the knowledge of me, says the Lord.
Zechariah 13:9And I will make the third part go through the fire, cleaning them as silver is made clean, and testing them as gold is tested: and they will make their prayer to me and I will give them an answer: I will say, It is my people; and they will say, The Lord is my God.
Malachi 3:3 He will take his seat, testing and cleaning the sons of Levi, burning away the evil from them as from gold and silver; so that they may make offerings to the Lord in righteousness.
1 Peter 1:7 So that the true metal of your faith, being of much greater value than gold (which, though it comes to an end, is tested by fire), may come to light in praise and glory and honour, at the revelation of Jesus Christ:
1 Peter 4:12 Dear brothers, do not be surprised, as if it was something strange, if your faith is tested as by fire:
C-The causes of failure in prayer
- Disobedience
Deuteronomy 1:45 And you came back, weeping before the Lord; but the Lord gave no attention to your cries and did not give ear to you.
1 Samuel 14:37 And Saul, desiring directions from God, said, Am I to go down after the Philistines? will you give them up into the hands of Israel? But he gave him no answer that day.
1 Samuel 28:6 And when Saul went for directions to the Lord, the Lord gave him no answer, by a dream or by the Urim or by the prophets.
- Hidden sins
Psalms 66:18 I said in my heart, The Lord will not give ear to me:
- Indifference
Proverbs 1:28 Then I will give no answer to their cries; searching for me early, they will not see me:
- Lack of mercy
Proverbs 21:13 He whose ears are stopped at the cry of the poor, will himself get no answer to his cry for help.
- Contempt for the law
Proverbs 28:9 As for the man whose ear is turned away from hearing the law, even his prayer is disgusting.
- bloodshed authors’ faults
Isaiah 1:15 And when your hands are stretched out to me, my eyes will be turned away from you: even though you go on making prayers, I will not give ear: your hands are full of blood.
- Iniquity
Isaiah 59:2 But your sins have come between you and your God, and by your evil doings his face has been veiled from you, so that he will give you no answer.
Micah 3:4 Then they will be crying to the Lord for help, but he will not give them an answer: yes, he will keep his face veiled from them at that time, because their acts have been evil.
D-Punishment, sign of the Father’s love
Deuteronomy 8:5 Keep in mind this thought, that as a son is trained by his father, so you have been trained by the Lord your God.
Job 33:19 Pain is sent on him as a punishment, while he is on his bed; there is no end to the trouble in his bones;
Psalms 94:12 Happy is the man who is guided by you, O Jah, and to whom you give teaching out of your law;
Proverbs 3:11-12 11 My son, do not make your heart hard against the Lord’s teaching; do not be made angry by his training: 12 For to those who are dear to him the Lord says sharp words, and makes the son in whom he has delight undergo pain.
John 15:2 He takes away every branch in me which has no fruit, and every branch which has fruit he makes clean, so that it may have more fruit.
1 Corinthians 11:32 But if punishment does come, it is sent by the Lord, so that we may be safe when the world is judged.
Hebrews 12:5-6 5 And you have not kept in mind the word which says to you as to sons, My son, do not make little of the Lord’s punishment, and do not give up hope when you are judged by him; 6 For the Lord sends punishment on his loved ones; everyone whom he takes as his son has experience of his rod.
Revelation 3:19 To all those who are dear to me, I give sharp words and punishment: then with all your heart have sorrow for your evil ways.
Our prayers support you in understanding the causes of failure in prayers in order to avoid these hindrances.
PRAYER OF ACCEPTANCE OF JESUS CHRIST AS LORD AND PERSONAL SAVIOR
I now invite anyone who wants to become a new creation by walking in the truth, to pray with me as follows :
Lord Jesus, I have long walked in the lusts of the world ignoring your love for humans. I acknowledge that I have sinned against you and ask forgiveness for all my sins, because today I have decided to give you my life by taking you as my Lord and personal Savior. I acknowledge that you died on the cross of Calvary and that you rose from the dead for me.
I am now saved and born again by the power of the Holy Spirit. Lead me each day to eternal life you give to all who obey your Word. Reveal to me and strengthen my heart and my faith so that your light may shine in my life right now.
Thank you, Lord Jesus, for accepting me in your divine family so that I too can contemplate the wonders of your kingdom.
I will now choose a nearby waterpoint to baptize myself by immersion, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
To you all adoration, power, and glory, now and forever and ever. Amen!
I would be glad to revert on your queries as necessary, before sharing next week on some Jesus’ prayers and requests for prayers.
May the Almighty Lord God bless you in abundance.
David Feze, Servant of the Almighty God.