Lesson Two HINDRANCES TO EFFECTIVE PRAYER

BIBLE BAPTIST CHURCH TWELVE LESSONS ON PRAYER Lesson Two HINDRANCES TO EFFECTIVE PRAYER STUDY TEXT: John 11:38 44. KEY THOUGHT: What various hindrances we meet In coming to the mercy seat; Yet who, that knows the worth of prayer, But wishes to be often there? William Cowper. INTRODUCTION: When Jesus prayed, He confidently knew that His Father always heard Him verse 42. He had nothing in His life that would hinder the communication between Him and His Father. A right relationship with the Heavenly Father is vital. The Palestinian Covenant included a physical curse that would come upon a disobedient nation of Israel. One aspect of this reminds us of what it is like to have our prayers hindered see: Deuteronomy 28:23 a. What about you? When you pray, are you confident that the Father always hears you, and will answer your prayer? Probably not at all times because, as a part of sinful mankind, we have issues that hinder our prayer life. In this lesson, we will look at some of those hindrances. LESSON: I. PRINCIPAL ISSUES: Principal issues are those issues that deal with the chief, or most considerable aspect of our lives, i.e. our HEART. Our heart must be kept right, if we are to pray aright. Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life Proverbs 4:23. A. A HARBORING HEART will hinder your prayers Proverbs 28:13. He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy. To harbor is to entertain; to permit to lodge, rest or reside; to conceal or hide; to give refuge to as, to harbor a thief. 1. The very fact that we hide certain sins is proof that we know that they are shameful and wrong. 2. Examples in Scripture a. Adam Genesis 3:8; Job 31:33. b. Cain Genesis 4:9. c. David II Samuel 11:5,14 15; 12:1 7; Psalm 32:3 5. 3. Is there a sin you are harboring; refusing to deliver it up to God s justice? I John 1:9. 7

B. A HESITANT HEART will hinder your prayers James 1:5 6; Hebrews 10:23; I Timothy 2:8. If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. If you pray for bread and bring no basket to carry it, you prove the doubting spirit which may be the only hindrance to the gift you ask D.L. Moody. The prayer that is faithless is fruitless Thomas Watson. In our private prayers and in our public services we are forever asking God to do things that He either has already done or cannot do because of our unbelief. We plead for him to speak when he has already spoken and is at that very moment speaking. We ask Him to come when He is already present and waiting for us to recognize Him. We beg the Holy Spirit to fill us while all the time we are preventing Him by our doubts A. W. Tozer. 1. Prayer is dependent upon our belief in what God has said. a. Illustration: The story is told about a church in a small town which seemed to have everything going its way. There were no gambling casinos, no liquor stores, and no beer joints in the entire area. After several years, however, a night club was built right on Main Street. The congregation was very much disturbed and held several all night prayer meetings in which some members specifically asked God to burn the tavern down. Well, a few days later, during a tremendous thunderstorm, lightning did strike the drinking establishment and fire completely demolished it. The owner, knowing how the church had prayed, sued them for damages. His lawyer claimed that it was their prayers which caused the loss. The church, however, hired their own lawyer and fought the charges. After many hearings and much deliberation, the judge declared: It is the opinion of this court that wherever the guilt may lie, the tavern owner is the one who really believes in prayer, while the church members do not! Doesn't this suggest how faithless we often are? b. Matthew 21:21 22. c. Matthew 9:27 30 (note: verse 29). d. God answers our prayers according to [in agreement with, harmonizing with] our faith. 2. Does your prayer life suffer because of a heart of unbelief? C. A HARDENDED HEART will hinder your prayers Psalms 66:18. If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me. 1. To regard something is have esteem for, or think highly of, something. a. The thought here is not the same as point A, above. Here the sin is not being hidden, but rather looked upon as being OK, good, normal, or no big deal. This is not a natural feeling for a believer, but one that can come through repeated refusal to heed the Spirit s conviction, resulting in a calloused heart toward sin. b. Jeremiah 5:3. 2. What sin in your life do you think is okay? What is your justification for it? 8

D. A HEADSTRONG HEART will hinder your prayers Proverbs 28:9. He that turneth away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer shall be abomination. 1. Headstrong is defined as violent; obstinate; ungovernable; resolute to run his own way; bent on pursuing his own will; not easily restrained; directed by ungovernable will or proceeding from obstinacy. 2. Can a believer have such a rebellious heart? see: Zechariah 7:11 12. a. When repentance is not exercised, and a believer is not growing in grace, the virtue of temperance will become non existent. b. Rebellion will become the norm, and God s discipline becomes sure. 3. What area of your life are you refusing to submit to the Lord s will? What recurring sin, whether in thought or in deed, has become a tower of rebellion in your life that you run to in moments of Holy Spirit conviction? E. A HYPOCRITICAL HEART will hinder your prayers Job 27:8 9. For what is the hope of the hypocrite, though he hath gained, when God taketh away his soul? Will God hear his cry when trouble cometh upon him? Sincerity is the prime requisite in every approach to the God who requires truth in the inward parts and who hates all hypocrisy, falsehood and deceit Geoffrey B. Wilson. 1. II Corinthians 1:12. 2. God demands sincere service. Out of a heart of love and appreciation, we are to obey Him whom we profess to follow. 3. If we name His name (do you call yourself a Christian?), we are to depart from iniquity. Prayer is good, but when used as a substitute for obedience, it is naught but a blatant hypocrisy, a despicable Pharisaism C. T. Studd. II. PERSONAL ISSUES: Personal issues are those particular to the individual believer. The manifested sins under the general issues will be varied among believers. A. Sins related to PLEASURE James 4:3. Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts. 1. God will not answer prayers that are directed toward the fulfilling of your sinful desires. 2. These desires can be many: Money, property, vehicles, reputation, opportunities, wife, husband, college, etc. a. Are praying for these items sinful? Not necessarily. You may pray for money because you have a genuine need that you want God to provide. I may pray for it because I want to upgrade my two month old phone to the newly released model that has so many more features. My prayer is purely seeking to fulfill my pleasure; yours is not. b. You may pray that your child is accepted into a particular college because of the prestige associated with a degree from that institution. I may pray for the same thing, but because I believe it is God s will for providing the necessary training to prepare my child for the field to which God has called him. Do you see the difference? 3. I John 3:22. 9

B. Sins related to PRETENSE Matthew 6:5 7. Public prayer is no evidence of piety. It is practiced by an abundance of hypocrites. But private prayer is a thing for which the hypocrite has no heart C.H. Spurgeon. 1. Proverbs 16:5. You can picture the scene. The rabbi calls upon Brother So and so to pray in the synagogue, and then he begins the most polished, flowery prayer that the congregation had ever heard. Once he sat down the members of the congregation were awed by his knowledge and use of language and obvious spirituality! He sat with a smug grin, knowing that he had impressed the whole congregation by what he had said. Jesus declared that he got what he wanted, the approval of men. But he did not receive what he prayed for in the least Phil Newton. 2. Who do we seek to please in our various religious activities? Are we playing the part like an actor/actress, or are we seeking to please only our Father Who art in heaven? Do we pray in order to cause others to think highly of us, or to maintain an image, or reputation before men? Do we pray to somehow impress even ourselves that we are spiritual? Do we pray in order to gain merit with God? 3. Luke 18:9 14. III. PEOPLE ISSUES People issues are those pertaining to one's relationship with others. Our interaction with others has a profound effect upon our prayer life. A. UNRESOLVED CONFLICTS will hinder your prayer life 1. Matthew 5:23 24. 2. Luke 19:8. 3. The account of Joseph Genesis 45:1 15. It is not an exaggeration to say that relationships are the most important thing in life, because the two greatest commandments in the Bible have to do with right relationships first toward God, and then toward one another. Whenever you see broken relationships toward God or in the family or in the church, you know that it is not pleasing to God. God is in the business of reconciling broken relationships Cole. 4. The key in Joseph s life was his attitude. If he was harboring bitterness and resentment, he would have never reconciled with his brethren. A wrong attitude on your part will hinder reconciliation, and will hinder your prayer life. B. An UNFORGIVING SPIRIT will hinder your prayer life Mark 11:25 26; Colossians 3:12 14. 1. Romans 1:31 32. Implacable denotes one that refuses to be reconciled, but is full of vengeful thoughts and actions that are unyielding. 2. God will not hear your prayers when practicing that which He says is worthy of death! He sent His only begotten Son to pay the penalty for your sin so that you might be reconciled to Him. Your sins were far more grievous to God than any person s offense could ever be toward you. You must seek to be reconciled, and not refuse reconciliation when sought by another. 3. Leviticus 19:18. 10

4. Read the account of Absalom and Amnon II Samuel 13:1 33. C. An UNFEELING HEART will hinder your prayer life Proverbs 21:13. Whoso stoppeth his ears at the cry of the poor, he also shall cry himself, but shall not be heard. 1. See: James 2:13; Isaiah 1:15 17. 2. We are to follow the Lord s example of showing compassion on others Proverbs 19:17. a. Matthew 5:7. b. Matthew 18:23 34. IV. PERSPECTIVE ISSUES Perspective issues are those relating to how we view situations and events, which translates practically into how we pray. A. Lack of PATIENCE James 5:7 12. Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh. Grudge not one against another, brethren, lest ye be condemned: behold, the judge standeth before the door. Take, my brethren, the prophets, who have spoken in the name of the Lord, for an example of suffering affliction, and of patience. Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy. But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation. 1. If our focus is upon the trials and tribulations of our present circumstances, and we lose sight of the purpose of our trials and the end for which God allows them, we will get discouraged, and stop praying, or pray in the flesh. a. Romans 8:23 28. b. Notice the progression of this passage. When, in circumstances that cause us to groan within ourselves, but, at the same time waiting for the adoption with a confident expectation, the Spirit takes up where our prayers fall short. Through all of it, though we may not know exactly how to pray, or what is going on, we do know that God has a purpose in it all, and, instead of our prayers being hindered, they are helped. 2. Have you lost sight of God s purpose in your trials and tribulations? How has that affected your prayer life? B. Lack of PASSION James 5:16. Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. 1. Jeremiah 29:12 13. 2. Psalms 119:58. 3. God wants us to approach Him with our whole heart. It is about being open and honest before the Lord. We have become a very stoic people, hiding our feelings from others, pretending to be stronger than we are, etc. God is not fooled by any of that. If we want 11

to feign strength before Him, He will allow us to use our strength up first, so that we see our need of His, and truly seek it. C. Lack of PERSEVERANCE Luke 11:5 10. And he said unto them, Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say unto him, Friend, lend me three loaves; For a friend of mine in his journey is come to me, and I have nothing to set before him? And he from within shall answer and say, Trouble me not: the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give thee. I say unto you, Though he will not rise and give him, because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him as many as he needeth. And I say unto you, 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. 1. Don t give up praying! God is faithful, and His timing is perfect Luke 18:1. 2. Psalm 27:13. One day George Mueller began praying for five of his friends. After many months, one of them came to the Lord. Ten years later, two others were converted. It took 25 years before the fourth man was saved. Mueller persevered in prayer until his death for the fifth friend, and throughout those 52 years he never gave up hoping that he would accept Christ! His faith was rewarded, for soon after Mueller s funeral the last one was saved. D. Lack of PRECISION Mark 10:46 52. And they came to Jericho: and as he went out of Jericho with his disciples and a great number of people, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the highway side begging. And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out, and say, Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me. And many charged him that he should hold his peace: but he cried the more a great deal, Thou Son of David, have mercy on me. And Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called. And they call the blind man, saying unto him, Be of good comfort, rise; he calleth thee. And he, casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus. And Jesus answered and said unto him, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? The blind man said unto him, Lord, THAT I MIGHT RECEIVE MY SIGHT. And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way. 1. Philippians 4:6. So much of our prayer is vague and pointless. Some cry for mercy, but do not take the trouble to know exactly why they want it. Others ask to be delivered from sin, but do not name any sin from which a deliverance can be claimed. Still others pray for God s blessing on their land or on the world, and yet have no special field where they can wait and expect to see the answer. To everyone the Lord says, What do you really want, and what do you expect Me to do? Andrew Murray. 2. Are you vague in your prayers? Here is a test: Write down three or four people or situations that you are praying for, then describe exactly what you want God to do in each case. Do not use the word bless in your description! Dealing in generalities is the death of prayer J. H. Evans. 3. It s not that God doesn t know exactly what you need. He wants to hear you express your needs! See: Matthew 6:8. 12

CONCLUSION: 1. Our gracious Heavenly Father desires to bless us more that we know and certainly more than we ever deserve. 2. The problem we have with unheard or unanswered prayer rests with us It s not God s fault! Behold, the LORD S hand is NOT shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear: But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear Isaiah 59:1 2. 3. We must strive to keep ourselves on praying ground. 4. Thomas Adams: Never tell me of a stubborn heart where I see a stubborn knee. 5. Thomas Brooks Cold prayers do always freeze before they reach to heaven. Lesson prepared by: Evangelist Mike McDowell. The quotations from other men that have been utilized in this lesson does not necessarily imply or constitute our full or partial agreement with their faith and/or practice. 13