Sermon Tone Analysis

The Mystery of Unanswered Prayer

 

Matthew 6:5-13

*/Focus:/*/ God always knows the right answer to our requests: no, slow, grow, or let’s go./

 

*Introduction: Why Won’t God Answer Me?*

*I.

The Request Is Wrong—/No/*

A. Can we build shelters?

B. The two best seats in heaven?

C. Destroy Samaria?

 Illustration: The wrong church staff candidate

*II.

The Timing Is Wrong—/Slow/*

A. Childish impatience

Scripture: Isaiah 55

*III.

You Are Wrong—/Grow/*

Scripture: Psalm 66:18

Scripture: Matthew 5:23-24

Scripture: 1 Peter 3

A. Israel cheats on sacrifices

B. James’ warning

*IV.

Nothing Is Wrong—/Let’s Go!/*

*Conclusion: A Walk through the Lord’s Prayer*

 

*Do You Ever Ask, Why Won’t God Answer Me?*

It’s regular a occurrence with me .

My conversations go something like this: “Dave, didn’t Jesus say, ‘Ask and it shall be given, seek and you shall find, knock and the door shall be open’?

Didn’t he say that?”

Now, not being born yesterday, and being fairly confident in where conversations like that usually go, I sometimes play prophet, and I burst into the conversation and say, “Friend, what prayer have you been praying that you fear God is not answering?

Let’s get right to the root of the matter.”

It is amazing how often that response opens the door for an honest outpouring of confusion and frustration.

Someone says, “I’ve been praying for my husband to stop drinking, and he hasn’t stopped.”

“I’ve been praying for a job, but I can’t find one.”

“I’ve been praying for my wife’s depression.

Nothing has changed.”

“I’ve been praying for guidance, but no guidance has come.”

On and on the lamentations go.

I couldn’t begin to count how many people I’ve counseled over this mystery, or I could even call it the agony, of unanswered prayer.

Our Scripture passage today is from Matthew  6:5-13; let’s open our Bibles and read it now/:”/*/ /*/And now about prayer.

When you pray, don't be like the hypocrites who love to pray publicly on street corners and in the synagogues where everyone can see them.

I assure you, that is all the reward they will ever get.

But when you pray, go away by yourself, shut the door behind you, and pray to your Father secretly.

Then your Father, who knows all secrets, will reward you.

"When you pray, don't babble on and on as people of other religions do.

They think their prayers are answered only by repeating their words again and again.

Don't be like them, because your Father knows exactly what you need even before you ask him!

Pray like this: Our Father in heaven, may your name be honored.

May your Kingdom come soon.

May your will be done here on earth, just as it is in heaven.

Give us our food for today, and forgive us our sins, just as we have forgiven those who have sinned against us.

And don't let us yield to temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.”

/

 

If you’ve been praying and nothing seems to be happening, think on these statements with reference to unanswered prayer.

If the request is wrong, God will say /no /to your request.

If the timing is wrong, God might choose to say /slow/, go slow, wait.

If you are wrong—a distinct possibility for some of us—if something is amiss in your life, maybe God will choose, instead of granting your request, to say, “You need to /grow/.”

But if the request is right and the timing is right and you are right, chances are God will say, “Let’s /go/,” and grant the request.

Let me develop these statements so you can apply them more effectively to your own situations as you pray.

*I.

The Request Is Wrong—/No/*

First, if the request is wrong, God will say /no/.

There are such things as wrong or inappropriate prayer requests.

You are aware of that, aren’t you?

Three famous disciples during the time of Jesus—Peter, James and John—accompanied Jesus to the top of a high mountain, and there, all of a sudden, God’s full glory descends upon Jesus.

The three disciples stand back in awe.

They behold the splendor of God just a few feet away.

And they are so taken with Jesus’ Transfiguration that they say, “Jesus, allow us to build shelters up here, and we’ll just live up here the rest of our lives, and we’ll bask in your glory.”

What was Jesus’ response, in a word, to their request?

/No./

“No.

I’m not going to grant that one, fellows.

We’ve got work to do down in the plains, down where people live.

We’re not just going to stay up here and bask in my glory.

No. Wrong request.”

One time James and John came to Jesus, and they asked if they could make reservations for the best two seats in heaven.

They said, “We’d like one directly on Jesus’ left and one directly on Jesus’ right.

Could you arrange that for us, Jesus?” Remember Jesus’ answer to that request?

“No.

I’m not going to grant that one, fellows.

It’s a wrong request.”

Another time Jesus and the disciples were denied a travel permit through a certain part of Samaria.

That denial aggravated the disciples so much that they requested Jesus to destroy the entire region with fire from heaven.

Remember Jesus’ reply to their request?

Jesus said, “No, I didn’t come to torch people; I came to transform people.

No, I’m not going to grant that request.”

Do you see the point I’m making?

The disciples were fully capable of making inappropriate requests of Jesus.

And when the requests were wrong, Jesus said no.

 

Are you capable of making wrong requests to God?

I am.

I do.

I probably will in the future.

Are you capable of making requests that are totally self-serving?

I am.

Are you capable of making requests of God that are patently materialistic, convenience-oriented, shortsighted, perhaps immature?

I am.

And our God loves us too much to say yes to wrong requests.

If the request is wrong, God will answer the prayer, but his answer will be no.

And you wouldn’t want a God who would do any less.

By hindsight I can thank God for saying no to prayers I thought at the time were appropriate.

Now by hindsight I say, “Thank you, thank you, thank you that you said no to that particular request.”