The Lord Answers Those Who Pray To Him

From: June 21-27, 2011

TOPIC: "The Lord Answers Those Who Pray To Him" Genesis 25: 21-23 Isaac had children thanks to his prayers to God. We should obtain everything through prayer. You could have more if you would pray more. There are so many human efforts being made to get things that don’t arrive because many are far from prayer. Others have prayed and God has added, but later they do not maintain what God has given them because they cease to pray. What a shame! They are too busy with the things that God has blessed them with and they do not have or take the time to continue to pray to God. Upon Isaac was the promise that God had given to his father Abraham. And Rebekah’s womb, Isaac's wife, was barren. Twenty years later she became pregnant. And in order to have relief from the struggle of the children in her womb God had to be consulted. It is good to expose our case to God and ask for advice from His own lips. It turned out that the oldest was going to serve the youngest. In that womb there were two nations already fighting. What despair for Rebekah! But the best thing to do is to consult with God. So, when Rebekah and Isaac understood why all this struggle was going on they had peace because God clearly explained what was happening (Genesis 25: 23). We can see the good in talking to God. He who comes to Him, He will not cast them out (John 6: 37). In Judges 1:1 we read that at one point Joshua was no longer among the people, he had died. As a leader Joshua had managed to defeat the enemies of God's people. Now the people didn’t have their leader to enter the Promised Land. They could feel lost, without direction, so they had to go to God by themselves. The leader was no longer there, but God was there to accommodate the people on the land they were to live. It was God who promised, who called them and chose them. So from there on it was before God who they had to cry out. The Bible says that Joshua lived one hundred and ten years, but God is eternal, He never dies and that is why we should cry out to Him. When you're alone, you must go to God in clamor so that you could succeed and obtain what is yours. No one should take away what is yours, but lack of prayer will make you faint and lack of what God wants for you. Ask God, for He is specific and He will guide you. Notice why you are so worried. You should know that it is because of the lack of guidance from God for your life. 2 Samuel 2:1 Saul and Jonathan had already fallen and David had to be concerned because he was anointed to receive the crown and that meant a great deal of preparation, but he was calm in communion with God. If David had not been a man of prayer he would have been making plans and getting ready for the crown, for the kingdom, looking for his assistants, etc. But, here we see David consulting with Jehovah. He did not send messengers throughout all the coasts of Israel to call on Israel to give him allegiance and swear submission. There were already many in his favor, but it was with meekness with which he fought for Israel invoking the Lord always, and this is how it would always be, Jehovah would be the one to guide him. Every cause must be brought before God. Numbers 27:5 Here we see Moses doing this. How difficult it was for those men to give these women the land that belonged to them! It was a very unique case, they were daughters and they wanted their land. Moses did not have any instructions concerning this case, he didn’t seek the elderly or anyone else but rather he went to consult God. It was very fair what they were asking but they were women. They were going to distribute the lands among those who were surveyed and they were not surveyed. There was no way to win. If they had a brother they wouldn’t have to go to Moses. Everything seemed impossible. Moses, who was a meek man, consulted God. And the Lord answered Moses and told him exactly what he had to respond to these women. God does justice to those who pray. Psalm 78:34-36 There is a reason why we may be seeking God and that should not be the reason. The people obeyed God only when they felt the whip on their backs. When is it that one prays? When there is pressure and problems? Daniel prayed three times a day. It was to talk to his God, with someone he loved. God is not flesh like you and me, but He is our Father. Those who are moved to pray only because of the fear of death have hardened hearts. When thousands were dying beside them, then they would go to the door of the tabernacle as faithful sheep. But how willing were they to forget their God! Ungrateful! We are worms if we do not consider God’s favors, if within days of receiving them we forget. We must not be a fake when we are on our knees; we must not be liars in our prayers. When affliction comes it only brings out of the carnal man a feigned submission to God, but the heart is full of evil, and nothing else. Sin becomes a part of our own nature. We must be aware of the false heart and religious hypocrisy. Let us be faithful and truthful by loving the Lord. Those people sinned against Him and He gave them death. When the sword came against them they sought God, then they crawled to His feet, they came with strings around their necks confessing that they deserved death, they flattered with their mouths but their hearts were not right with God.

Their pitiful words were hypocrisy, their praises wind, there prayers a fraud and their repentance was superficial. This teaches us to put little trust in the declarations of repentance made by those who are dying on the basis of obvious terror and nothing else. Any thief will moan his repentance if he thinks that the judge will be moved by the scene and then released. God cannot be mocked with this kind of clamor. May our prayers, clamor and tears be without pretense! May our love be sincere, full of admiration and gratitude for our great God and Savior Jesus Christ! Nothing can touch us more than knowing that the good God gave His beloved Son for us on the cross to pay our evilness and our sins. That deserves no less than the best prayer, worship and praise from us. To Him be the glory forever. Amen.