Break Through Prayer
Break Through Prayer is a book written by Jim Cymbala, pastor of the Brooklyn Tabernacle, for more than twenty-five years. He is the bestselling author of several books, including one of my all-time favourites, Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire. In the latter, he tells the story of what happened to his broken-down church in one of America’s meanest neighbourhoods. It is a riveting and powerful testimony of what the Holy Spirit can do when believers get serious about prayer and the Gospel. In the introduction to Break Through Prayer, Jim writes — ‘The following chapters are written in hopes that no one who reads this book will suffer the tragedy of a life summed up by these words from Scripture: “You do not have because you do not ask God.”’ James 4:2
The past two days, Solomon reminded us in chapter 15 of Proverbs that the prayer of the righteous or upright pleases God and is heard by Him. In contrast, God detests the sacrifices of the wicked. For example, the Bible calls the sacrifices of Cain, Saul and Balaam, all mixed with disobedience, an abomination to the Lord. Even more vile were the sacrifices of Absalom, Jezebel and many Pharisees, for it was nothing more than a cloak for wilful sin and open rebellion. In that sense, our omnipresent God is far away, inaccessible, and even “deaf” to their pleas! Unless they repent and radically turn away from their sins, God will not hear them.
Yet the Bible tells us that God accepted the prayers of Abel, David, a young Solomon, the prophets Elijah, Simeon and Anna, as well as Cornelius, whose prayers and gifts to the poor were accepted as a memorial offering before God. It is clear that prayers proceeding from an upright heart not only delight God but secure success, for God is graciously near the upright and heeds their calls for intervention. Listen to David in the following Psalms:
In Psalm 34, he writes, The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, and his ears are attentive to their cry… The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; He delivers them from all their troubles.
In Psalm 145, he confesses, The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. He fulfils the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them.
Even when there is no voice, God still hears. When Artaxerxes asks Nehemiah in chapter 2, what is it you want, it says then I prayed to the God of heaven, and I answered the king. This happens in one breath – praying to God while answering the king!
David acknowledges in Psalm 38:9 All my longings lie open before you, Lord; my sighing is not hidden from you.
In Psalm 6: 8,9, David exclaims, Away from me, all you who do evil, for the LORD has heard my weeping. The LORD has heard my cry for mercy; the LORD accepts my prayer.
GRACE CHALLENGE FOR THE WEEK: In his Gospel, John wrote that God does not listen to sinners; he listens to the godly person who does his will. One Bible commentator summarized it beautifully when he said: the quality of one’s living affects the effectiveness of one’s praying. As unconfessed sin is clearly an obstacle, even to a true believer, I pray that we will radically turn away from all that hinders the work of the Holy Spirit and obstructs the outcome of our prayers with renewed commitment this week.
