Praying with a "tude"

Praying with a “Tude”
John 15; Revelation 3
February 17, 2019 MVC
Introduction:
A. Dear Lord, So far, today I’ve done all right. I haven’t gossiped, lusted, lost my
temper, haven’t been greedy, grumpy, nasty, selfish, or over-indulgent. I’m very
thankful for that. But in a few minutes, Lord, I’m going to get out of bed. From
then on as I face the world, the devil and my flesh, I desperately need you to do a
miracle of not letting my flesh control me but your Spirit. In Jesus Name, Amen.
B. Let me ask you – Is that your attitude when you go to prayer – a humble desperate
dependence upon God?
1. Is this the disposition of our hearts? Is this the posture of the heart?
2. When we do not have this attitude, it becomes one of the main reasons “why
we do not pray!”
C. Attitudes are “heart things”. Often we are not even aware of our attitude. But it is
what drives our prayer life and makes it either a hot prayer life or a lukewarm
prayer life or even one that is nonexistent!
• Do you know what attitude is driving your prayer life? First, let’s take a look at the
…
I. The “Tude” of a Hot Prayer Life – humble desperation
A. We see the need for this attitude revealed in the teachings of Jesus in John 15.
1. This a parable about the vine and branches, Jesus is the vine and we believers
are the branches.
2. We learn here and from the agricultural world that the vine is the source of
life and the branch is for the purpose of holding the fruit the vine produces.
a) Jesus taught that a branch cannot bear fruit of itself apart from the vine.
Read v4
b) He also taught that apart from Him they cannot bear fruit.
(1) Read v5
(2) What is true of the vine and branches is true of our relationship
with Jesus
c) Then we learn in v8 that God is glorified when we bear much fruit!
3. By the way, fruit is more of Jesus in our life!
a) A grape vine produces grapes so a Jesus vine produces Jesus.
b) The fruit is more and more of Jesus in our life, character, attitudes,
thinking and in our ministry to others so that it is Jesus working through
us Bringing People to Jesus and Helping Believers Become more like
Jesus!
4. Anybody here feel the need more of Jesus in their life? Marriage, parenting,
job, school, character, tough times, big decisions, ministry to others, etc.?
5. Then he said in v7 that what they cannot do for themselves God would do for
them in the context of prayer. Read v7.
B. Jesus was telling his disciples that they were in an impossible, hopeless,
unattainable, desperate situation. They were called to bear much fruit but they
were unable, “can - speaks of ability” apart from Him!
1. This is the heart of the Christian life. The true Biblical Christian life is not
difficult to do, it is impossible.
2. What God asks of us is beyond man’s ability. No matter how hard you try or
to figure it out what God asks of us is bigger than we are strong and smarter
than we are smart on our own!
3. Fruit bearing is a work of God not man
C. Humility is the disposition of heart that recognizes that all is of and from God and
nothing is of or from self!
• Jesus even said that He does nothing “of” Himself. He does not do it of His
own initiative, but rather it is the Father doing it in and through Him.
1. Humility is recognizing that God is the source, He is the cause, He is the
reason, all of my Christian life and ministry is of and from Him and not of or
from myself.
D. When we fully grasp this with our hearts, not just our minds, we cannot help but
be desperate and humble, “God, I cannot pull off what you want me to do, I need
you to do this!”
1. When we have this attitude, we cannot help but pray!
2. Prayer that is fervent – (on fire and intense), focused - not a wandering mind,
and full of faith and finally prayer from your heart rather than recited or
formal prayers!
3. On the one hand, it recognizes that apart from Jesus it is impossible to be and
do what God asks us to be and do. On the other hand, it recognizes that Jesus
does in and through us, what God asks us to be and do.
4. I saw a saying that said this – “May I never forget that on my best day I still
need God as desperately as I did on my worst day!”
• The natural response of a heart like this is to call out to Jesus because God does for
us, through prayer, what we cannot do for ourselves. Now let’s take a look at the…
II. “Tude” of a Lukewarm Prayer Life. – contentment/self sufficiency
A. By lukewarm I do not mean that there is no prayer in that person’s life but rather I
mean a prayer life that has no fire and intensity to it. They pray but their mind is
always wandering, there is no faith and it feels like they are just speaking to
themselves. It is more duty and responsibility than a humble desperation.
B. Let me say this “It is possible to have the right theology about prayer and even
humility, but a wrong attitude in your heart”
1. That is when our heads and our hearts have not been wired together by the
Spirit of God.
2. Right theology does not produce a hot prayer life!
3. The need is for a heart surgery performed by the Holy Spirit of God.
C. Turn to Revelation 3 where we see this kind of heart.
1. In this passage, we see in v15-17 the condition of the church; in v18-19
Jesus’ counsel to the church; in v20 Jesus’ call to the church.
2. Note in v14 that this passage is written to the church, a group of believers.
D. V 15-17 reveals their condition of self-sufficiency, a condition that blinded them
to their spiritual poverty.
1. He starts by saying they are lukewarm. Read v15-16.
2. In v17, he gives us a further glimpse into this condition. Read v17
a) They had a mixture of material wealth and spiritual poverty.
b) Their basic attitude was that “I have need of nothing” self-sufficiency;
just the opposite of the humble desperation that says, “I can do nothing.”
One says, “I can do nothing” the other says, “I have need of nothing.”
One says, “God, I need you for this” the other says, “I can handle this”
c) Jesus says there is a spiritual deception going on. “You do not know”
that you are spiritually in deep trouble.
3. Doesn’t this sound like the modern church in North America and like many
of us? On the outside and by North American standards things look great but
the way God sees it can be a completely different thing!
a) We want to see God do miraculous things like we hear He does at a
place like the Brooklyn Tabernacle where drug addicts, prostitutes, and
gang member’s lives are turned upside down by Jesus and marriages are
restored and families healed!
b) They do not have the resources there like we do in the suburbs so their
first resort is prayer to God! We go to prayer as a last resort as we say,
“I guess all we can do now is pray”
c) We are just as desperate for God in the suburbs as they are in the middle
of Brooklyn, New York or Chicago, IL. Yes, right here in the suburbs,
we have our addicts to drugs, drink and porn; we have our troubled
marriages and wayward kids who are not walking with the Lord. We
have habits, hurts and hang-ups we cannot shake; we have the “ds” -
depression, death, divorce, divisions, diseases and dollar struggles
demons, on and on.
d) We are lulled to sleep and deceived by the “resources” we have (money,
credit cards, contacts, education, experts, fancy vacations, etc.) that we
are trusting in to fix these problems, things that can only superficially
and temporarily fix us! We need Jesus just as desperately as those in the
city do for these problems to find the deep, transformational, and
permanent healing only Jesus can give do!
E. Listen to Jesus’ counsel regarding this situation.
1. Read v18 - Come to me
a) Buy the true riches, not material but the spiritual riches of God.
b) Allow Jesus to change your soiled life and put a clean garment on you.
c) You need spiritual medication for your eyes. You have been blind. You
need the healing of your spiritual eyes that only Jesus can give. You
need to see yourself, your situation and your God as they really are.
2. You see in God’s kingdom you do not buy things from Him with money.
God’s currency is faith. The entrance door into “God’s market” to get our
spiritual clothing and medicine is prayer.
a) Listen to Isa 64:7 - “There is no one who calls on Thy name, who
arouses himself to take hold of Thee.”
b) Prayer is the means by which we take hold of God. We put a hand on
Him and a hand on our hearts and circumstances so God transforms us.
3. Read v19 - Be zealous and repent. If your heart is being confronted today by
what I am saying, it is because Jesus loves you. Whom He loves He
reproves.
a) Zealous - be hot, be fervent
b) Repent - change of mind, heart and deeds.
F. We have seen that our prayer life reveals our heart attitude. If it is a lukewarm
prayer life then we have an attitude of self-sufficiency.
1. The key to a hot prayer life is not to commit or try to pray more or change
your prayer habits. The key is to change your heart, to change your attitude.
Then a hot prayer life will be the fruit of a heart of humble desperation.
2. Jesus is calling us this morning to repent of a heart attitude of selfsufficiency.
G. Listen to the call. Read v20
1. Remember this verse was written to Christians who have a self-sufficient
attitude.
2. The key to this is the eye salve that Jesus offers!
3. The picture that Jesus gives us is that self-sufficiency in the church and the
life of a believer puts Jesus on the outside, longing to come in and share life
with you on a moment-by-moment basis.
H. Invite and pray.