Featured Praying in vain

Amen sista!

 

God always answers our prayers.
Sometimes the answer is Yes
Sometimes it's No
Sometimes it's Not Now.

 

I found the following discussion about prayer when I was teaching Ephesians many years ago in which some time was spent discussing prayer. The discuss included the following:

Edmund Clowney in the New Dictionary of Theology [page 526] writes on prayer as follows:

Clowney makes some very significant points about prayer.

Then the question, if God is sovereign why pray at all? God knows before we ask what our request will be and He knows how he will respond. Perhaps an answer to this question can be found in the life of the Apostle Paul.

2 Corinthians 12:8,9, NKJV
8 Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me.
9 And He said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.[/i]

Here we see a prayer, offered in faith, for a temporal need that was not granted. Commenting on this passage W. Bingham Hunter [The God Who Hears] writes:

I am not familiar with the author or the book but I believe he gives one of the best explanations of prayer I have heard/read.​

 

But if you're listening and the prayer is sincere, does not God give an answer for the sinful prayers too, if even just to tell you in the Spirit that the prayer was sinful ?

 

I believe the preyers of Jesus Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane are an example of the above:

Matthew 26:37-42
37. And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and very heavy.
38. Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me.
39. And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.
40. And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour?
41. Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.
42. He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done.

 

So what would your approach be to avoid praying in vain Judith?

 

...to pray as the Scribes and Pharisees did? Simply for outward appearance?

 

Um, no, I was asking a question. reference the Op

 

Um, no, I was asking a question. reference the Op

...sorry 'bout dat'. I was always under the impression the Scribes and Pharisees were guilty of praying in vain..., but I'm not in this conversation to begin with.

Carry on. I'll be in the area all day.

 

Perhaps in an ideal fleshly world, we would think we need to get it right ahead of time. But an all knowing God KNOWS. :laugh:

He's big enough to use even our sinful prayers to correct us and point us in the right direction.

If He says NO to your sinful prayer, chances are you're gonna ask why. And the Holy Spirit will usually tell you why.

Prayer is connecting with God. And prayer doesn't have to be perfect. He can fix the imperfections and still get to us what He needs us to get.

 

Again,I think you're approaching a very tenuous line of encouraging people to not pray. There isn't enough prayer. We don't need to encourage people to pray less.

Is there Biblical evidence that God doesn't hear random "meaningless" prayers? And if someone is praying it, how is it meaningless?

 

What prayers do you pray, that have results?

 

The Bible is very clear about the answer to your question. Only those prayers that are in keeping with the will of God. Don't confuse God's revealed will with God's will of purpose. For example, God has appointed the precise time and circumstances of your death. You may be walking with God like Enoch and thus think you can claim all the promises of God in regard to health and other blessings but when it is your appointed time regardless of your praying for health you will die and the graveyard is proof of that. Every faith healer has died in spite of their faith and prayers to be healed.

Moreover, the general consequences of sin are inescapable as death proves. However, there are more inescapable consequences of sin than mere physical death. Every action in our life puts in place a series of reactions and consequences, regardless if God has forgiven us for bad actions. Still the reactions are set in motion and whatsoever a man soweth that shall he also reap regardless of praying for the contrary. You may be enabled to weather them better but not escape them.

 

Thanks but I was asking the lady.

 

Your welcome, and don't worry, because there will be no charge, its free.

 

So is the answer to the prayers you pray never NO?