A New Beginning

Guest (Male): None of us goes out looking for problems or crises. They seem to come looking for us. Today, pastor Greg Laurie shows us what to do when problems loom large.

Greg Laurie: Am I talking to someone right now that's facing trouble? Are you looking at what looks to be an insurmountable obstacle? What should you do? Pray. Every trouble is a call to pray. So you should turn your panic into prayer. You should turn your worry into worship.

Guest (Male): Many of us have a few friends online who seem to live a worry-free life. What's that like, huh? Every post is an unbelievable meal, a breathtaking sunset, or some new toy they just had to have. Well, someone said we should never compare someone's highlight reel to our blooper reel. But how do we deal with the troubles that stop us in our tracks? Today on A New Beginning, pastor Greg Laurie urges us to take those cares and concerns to the Lord. Good insight coming your way today.

Greg Laurie: Let's grab our Bibles and turn to James chapter 5. James chapter 5, and the title of my message is it's time to pray. How many of you believe in the power of prayer? Raise your hand up. How many of you don't pray as much as you ought to? Raise your hand up. Yeah, I'm with you. I'm with you. Why don't we pray more? I don't know the answer. Sometimes we offer up what we think are reasons, but in reality are excuses. We might say, well, I don't pray more because I just don't have the time.

I'm so busy. Well, of course, the response to that is, how much time do you spend on social media, right? I mean, think about that. Uh local researches say people check their Facebook, Twitter, uh TikTok, etc., other media accounts 17 times per day, pretty much every waking hour. Teenagers spend 9 hours every day consuming media. You've had it happen, haven't you? You start flipping through those little videos and next thing you know 45 minutes are gone, even an hour is gone. But we say I don't have time to pray. What if you prayed 17 times a day as much as you check social media?

One of the biggest lessons from social media will prove that in the last day prayerlessness was not from a lack of time. And then some people will say, well, I don't pray more because well, I don't really know that prayer is all that important. Now, we probably wouldn't verbalize it. But in a way, maybe it's true because we don't really think it matters that much, but of course we should pray. And we should pray often. Jesus himself prayed. And Jesus was God incarnate walking among us. And yet how often do we read in the Gospels of Jesus spending the night in prayer or retreating by himself to pray?

Here's another excuse we offer as to why we don't pray. We don't really believe that prayer works. We don't really believe it works, but in fact, it does. In fact, the Bible even says in James 4:2, you have not because you ask not. Try this thought on for size. I believe that there are certain things God wants to do for you and in you. Certain things that God wants to give to you, they may not be yours because you have simply failed to pray about it. Again, you have not because you asked not. You might say, well, I'm having problems with my family and I just don't know what to do anymore.

Have you prayed about it? Have you specifically brought that need before the Lord? You have not because you asked not. Well, we're struggling right now financially. It's hard to make ends meet. Okay, hold on. Have you prayed about that specifically? Could it be that God will provide for you supernaturally and he's just waiting for you to ask? You have not because you asked not. Well, I'm sick and the doctor hasn't given me any real hope. Have you prayed about that? Could it be that God wants to touch and heal you and he's just waiting for you to ask?

Jesus said, ask and it shall be given, seeking you shall find, knocking the door shall be open. But in the original language, it's implied to do it continuously. So keep asking, keep seeking, keep knocking. You have not because you asked not. Now let's read about what James says about prayer. Uh James 5:13. Is any among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. Is any among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord.

And their prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well. And the Lord will raise them up. If they've sinned, their sins will be forgiven. Therefore, confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. Let's pray together. Now, Father as we open your word uh we come with that same request that the disciples came to you with when they said, Lord would you teach us to pray? Help us to see the power of prayer. Help us to know how to pray more effectively.

Speak to us from your word, we ask now in Jesus name. Amen. So this is our last message in this series on James. And James gives us four specific and practical areas in which prayer is vital. Number one, you should pray when you're in trouble. Verse 13. You should pray when you're sick uh verses 14 to 15 of James 5. When you have sinned, you should pray. James 5:15. And finally, when specific needs arise, you should pray. So let's start with the first one. You should pray when you're facing trouble. Am I talking to someone right now that's facing trouble?

Another translation says when you are afflicted. Are you afflicted right now? Are you facing a severe hardship? Are you looking at what looks to be an insurmountable obstacle? What should you do? We should pray. The temptation is to get angry at God for allowing this to happen when in reality we should pray. Every trouble is a call to pray. So you should turn your panic into prayer. You should turn your worry into worship. As Paul writes in Philippians, in everything with prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your request be made known to God. So go to him in your time of trouble.

Sometimes God may send the affliction himself. Let's be honest. We don't pray as much when things are going well as we do when they aren't going well. Is that true for you? When things are going great, I say, oh, fantastic. Hey, you know, like I don't need to pray. But when you're in trouble, you pray. The Lord may allow affliction to get your attention. The psalmist wrote, before I was afflicted, I went astray, but now I have kept your word. And sometimes God will allow it. He will allow that and maybe the devil bringing it in your direction, but God has allowed it for his purposes.

But the main thing is pray about it. You know, we have the story in the Old Testament of Nehemiah who was described as the cupbearer of the king. That meant that he was in a special position uh to influence the king. He would try out the king's food before the king would eat it. So he was a counselor, a helper to the king. Uh and so he went to the king and asked for permission to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. And the king gave his permission and underwrote it. So Nehemiah went to rebuild that wall.

And did he get a standing ovation from the people living in Jerusalem? Because that wall had been lying in ruin for quite a long time. No, he faced opposition. A man named Sanballat criticized and threatened him. Which reminds us whenever we're doing the will of God you're going to be criticized and threatened. You're going to face opposition. And when people are kicking you from behind, that means you're ahead of them, I guess. I don't know. But the main thing is Nehemiah prayed. He didn't take out a restraining order against Sanballat. He went to the Lord and he prayed in Nehemiah 4:4 when he said, hear oh our God, we're being mocked.

May their scoffing fall back on their own head. So he prayed about it. There's nothing wrong with asking God to remove your affliction. So if you're facing trouble whatever kind it is, it's okay to go to the Lord and say, Lord, would you remove this from me? And maybe the Lord will say, yes, I will. And maybe the Lord will say, no, I have a purpose in it. So you need to be patient and wait on me. But I think the best model for prayer in times like that is following the example of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane as he contemplated what was ahead with the crucifixion.

He said, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours be done. So you can say, Lord, if there's a way out of this if you might remove this problem, I would really appreciate it. But you may have a greater purpose. Therefore, I say to you, Father not my will, but yours be done. Which brings me to point number two. When things are going well, we should praise God. Verse 13. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. You know, we call on the Lord when things aren't going well.

Do we give thanks to God when they are? You know, you get up one morning and there's no real problem to speak of. You can say, Lord, thank you for a beautiful day. Thank you for my health. Thank you for my family. Thank you for my job. Thank you for everything, Lord. Thank you for saving me. Thank you for changing me, Lord. Thank you that you're in control of my life. That can really lift your mood. I'll tell you that. When you just start giving thanks for all that God has done we all remember the story of the 10 lepers who were healed by Jesus.

But only one returned to give thanks. And Jesus said to him, hey, I thought I healed 10. Where are the other nine? Remember to give thanks to God for what he has done.

Guest (Male): Pastor Greg Laurie will have the second half of his message in just a moment.

Greg Laurie: Have you downloaded the Harvest Plus app yet? This is an amazing resource that has so much to offer and really every one of our listeners should have this all on all of their devices. You can download the app for your phone, Android and iOS. You can download it for a tablet. You can download it for your TV. And it's so full of great material. First of all, it has all of my sermons that I'm presently in and once I've given in the past. It has also our movies. You know, we've done a number of really outstanding films including Steve McQueen, The Salvation of an American Icon.

We have another one on Johnny Cash called Johnny Cash, The Redemption of an American Icon. We have another one that's called A Rush of Hope and in many more films that you can watch and we're acquiring new films and we're expanding our film library. But as they say in those commercials, but wait, there's more. We also feature videos from pastor Chuck Smith. We have all of the cartoons that we did for Ben Born Again and Yolo Dog for your kids. And then the new Greg Laurie show which is our podcast. So download the Harvest app and you will have all of these great spiritual resources at your fingertips to watch when you want to watch them or listen when you want to listen.

So download the Harvest Plus app now. It 's free.

Guest (Male): Well, we're gleaning some great practical insight on prayer today as pastor Greg presents his final message in our study series in James. Let's continue.

Greg Laurie: Number three. We should pray when we are sick. We should pray when we're sick. Verse 14. Is there anyone among you who is sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. And their prayer offered in faith will make this sick person well. Question. Does God still heal people today? I believe he does. As I've said before, God is still in the healing business. Have we asked him to heal us? I do believe there's a promise of physical healing in Scripture.

There in Isaiah 53:5 and quoted again in the New Testament, by his stripes we are healed. So what should we do when we are sick? The answer is call for the elders of the church to pray over the person. And verse 15 says the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well. That doesn't mean there's some special prayer that you pray. It just means with as much faith as you can muster you ask God to heal you, but then you go to the leaders of the church to pray for you. There are instances in the Bible of people who are not healed.

The apostle Paul prayed for people and God healed them. The apostle Paul even raised a guy from the dead. That's a top-level miracle right there. He was preaching one night and he was going long as preachers sometimes do. And uh a young man who was up on a top balcony by uh a window fell out and died. So someone comes to Paul. Paul, stop. Eutychus just fell out the window and he's dead. Paul says, everyone wait. Hold on a second. He goes out, goes to Eutychus, prays over him, raises him from dead, then goes back and finishes his sermon.

I like that. So that's a big miracle. So certainly everyone Paul would pray for would be healed. No, they weren't. He wrote to Timothy and said in 2 Timothy 4:20, he had to leave Trophimus sick in Miletus. He mentioned Epaphroditus who was ill and almost dying in Philippians 2:27. So if he had this gift of healing, why didn't he just pray for all of them to be healed? Because God doesn't always say yes. And Paul himself had what he described as a thorn in the flesh some kind of physical ailment or infirmity. Three times he asked the Lord to remove it.

And the Lord said, my grace is sufficient for you. So we pray and we bring it to the Lord. Number four. When we pray, we should confess our sin. Verse 15. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. Now this verse appears to suggest that one sin could contribute to sickness. Now let me explain this carefully. In a broad sense, all sickness is a result of sin. I don't mean personal sin. I mean sin in general. If Adam and Eve had not eaten of the forbidden fruit, we would have never gotten sick. If Adam and Eve had not eaten of the forbidden fruit, we would have never aged.

If Adam and Eve had not eaten of the forbidden fruit, I would have a full head of hair. But because they sinned, sin and death entered the world. Romans 5:12 says when Adam sinned, sin entered the world. Adam sinned brought death and death spread to everyone. For everyone has sin. But sometimes sometimes, I underline that word there can be a connection between personal sin and anoint affliction. Uh there's a story in John 5:14 where there is a paralytic that Jesus healed. And then Jesus said to him, see you're well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you.

And so that doesn't mean if you have a disability, it's because you've sinned. What it does mean is there can be a connection. But having said that there are some people that are afflicted who are godly men and women and it has nothing to do with their sin. Remember the story of Job again. Job was a perfect and upright man, one that feared God and shunned evil. And yet the Lord allowed physical calamity to come upon his servant. So we don't know that. So the best thing to do is just confess your sin to God.

Verse 16 says, confess your sins to each other and pray for each other. This means we do this with believers. This is why a small group can be great because it's harder in a large group. But when you develop a close circle of friends who you trust and will keep your confidence, you can say, hey, I'm struggling with this or I need your help there. But also I would add if you have sinned against someone, you should go to that person and ask them to forgive you because unconfessed sin can bring your prayer life to a screeching halt.

The psalmist says, if I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me. So if you're holding on to some sin and you need to ask someone to forgive you, that could hinder your prayers. Uh Matthew 5:23 Jesus says, if you're presenting a sacrifice at the altar and you suddenly remember someone has something against you, leave your sacrifice there at the altar and be reconciled to that person, then offer your sacrifice to God. Sometimes it's just going to someone and saying, I'm sorry that I said that to you or I'm sorry I said that about you.

I'm sorry for this thing that I did that was wrong. Will you forgive me? Point number five. You are a righteous child of God, so pray like one. You are a righteous child of God, so pray like one. Look at verse 16. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. You might say, well, Greg, I'm not a righteous man or woman. Excuse me. Are you a Christian? If you are, then you are a righteous person. I didn't say you always act like a righteous person. But positionally you are a righteous person. 1 Corinthians 1:30 says, Christ has made us righteous.

He's made us pure and holy and he's freed us from sin. So you're a member of God's family. Behave like that. Don't come, you know, with timidity to God. Father, I I just I just pray this. I come boldly. You're his child. Let us come boldly to the throne of grace that we might find mercy in time of need boldly. Lord, it's your son. Lord, it's your daughter. Father, I'm your child and I come to you now with this need or with this petition or whatever it is. When you're a member of the family of God, you have access.

Use it boldly. Isn't that great to know? It's not based on what you've done. It's based on what he's done for you. It's through the blood of Jesus through a new and living way, Hebrews says, that I have access to the throne of God. Now you know, my family, if they call me, I'm going to answer. If my wife calls me, if my son calls me, if my grandchildren call me, you know, if I get that call and I'm talking to you, I'll say, hold on one sec. Yeah, what's up? They might be calling me to take them to ice cream.

I don't know. But because they're part of my family, they have access. I answer immediately. I'm not so sure if that's a two-way street. When I call my wife, sometimes there's no answer. So I have a special feature on my phone called Find My Wife. Do you have that? Actually, it's called Find My Phone, but it works to find your wife or husband too. And so when you call it, it sets off a special sound in the phone and I call it, call it, call it. She finally answers. What? Yeah, hi. What's going on? What what are we having for lunch today, right?

Relationship provides access to God.

Guest (Male): Some great insight today on A New Beginning on the privilege of prayer based on our relationship with God. And pastor Greg Laurie will have a final illustration before we wrap up today. So stay tuned. Now it's a good time to ask if you have a relationship with God. Do you have access to God through prayer because you've come to the Lord and asked him to forgive your sins? Pastor Greg, what would you say to the person listening who would like to make that kind of change today?

Greg Laurie: I would say that God is just a prayer away. You know, it doesn't take years to become a Christian. It doesn't take months. Frankly, it doesn't even take hours. It can happen so quickly. It just starts with you saying to God, I know I'm a sinner. I know that you love me. I know that you sent Jesus to die on the cross for my sin and paid for those sins and then to rise again from the dead. And I want him to come into my life. So here's my question to you. Have you done that yet?

Because Jesus who did die on that cross and rose again from the dead three days later is alive and standing at the door of your life right now and he's knocking. And he's saying, if you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in. Would you like your sin forgiven? Would you like to know that when you die you will go to heaven? Do you want Christ to come into your life right now? If so, why don't you just stop whatever it is you're doing and pray this prayer with me? You could pray it out loud.

You can pray it in the quietness of your own heart. But pray this prayer to God. Say, Lord Jesus I know that I am a sinner but I know that you are the Savior who died on the cross for my sin and rose again from the dead. I'm sorry for my sin and I turn from it now and I choose to follow you from this moment forward. I ask all of this in Jesus name. Amen. Listen. If you just prayed that prayer, the Bible promises that God has heard your prayer and has answered that prayer.

The Bible says that we will confess our sin. He's faithful and just to forgive us our sin and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. So God bless you. You've made the right decision, the decision to follow Jesus Christ.

Guest (Male): Yeah, that's right. And listen, as you begin to live this new life, we want to send you something to help you get started off right. It's pastor Greg's New Believer's Bible. It's in an easy to understand translation plus hundreds and hundreds of study helps especially for those who are new to the faith. Millions, literally millions of people have been helped by this resource. So get in touch for your own New Believer's Bible. We'll send it free of charge. Just call us at 1-800-821-3300. That's 1-800-821-3300. Or write us at A New Beginning box 4000 Riverside, California 92514.

Or go online to harvest.org and click No God. And pastor Greg, we're so thankful for the work God is doing through this ministry. We're touching lives for eternity. And we're really thankful for our friends who see the fruit of this ministry and invest so this work can reach even further. Isn't that right?

Greg Laurie: Yeah. Mhm. Absolutely. When you invest in Harvest Ministries you're investing in the souls of men and women, boys and girls. And what is the value of a soul? Well, let me personalize it. What's the value of your soul? What's the value of the soul of your husband, your wife your son or your daughter or your mom or your dad or your best friend? Well, I would say you probably couldn't put a price tag on it. It's so valuable. Well, listen, God says all souls are mine. God loves us and sent his son to die in the cross to pay the price for all of our sins so we could be forgiven and come into a relationship with him.

I can't think of a better investment of my resources, of my money than in the work of the kingdom of God. So we would ask you to prayerfully consider investing in Harvest Ministries as we continue on to fulfill the Great Commission.

Guest (Male): Yeah, that's right. And you can make your donation right now at harvest.org or write us at A New Beginning box 4000 Riverside, California 92514. Or call 1-800-821-3300. That's a 24/7 phone number. 1-800-821-3300. And while you're online with us, why not begin receiving pastor Greg's daily devotions via email every day? They're free of charge. We'll send them to the email address you provide for us. And when they arrive, you can read them or with one click listen to the audio version. Sign up today free of charge at harvest.org. Well, next time pastor Greg concludes our study and our series in the book of James.

More good insight on taking our prayer lives to the next level. But before we go, pastor Greg closes with a final illustration.

Greg Laurie: Years ago, we were holding a crusade in some city and I left my Bible in my hotel room. So I went to my son Christopher and I said, Christopher, I left my Bible in the hotel room. Will you go get it for me? He said, sure, Dad. So he goes and gets my Bible and comes back. And uh and he approaches the room where I'm at. And there's a couple guys volunteering to provide security. And he says, I need to give this Bible to my dad. Well, you don't have the security clearance. No, I'm his son.

Yeah, I don't know who you are. You don't have the little badge. You got to have the badge. He goes look, look at the Bible. It says Greg Laurie on the Bible. It's my dad's Bible. Yeah, but how do I know you're his son? He pulls out his driver's license. Look, it's Christopher David Laurie. I'm his son. The guy wouldn't let him in. I heard about this. I had that man killed. Now let me explain. No. He was just a little overzealous, right? But uh my son had access. We all have access to God.