Insight for Living

Chuck Swindoll: What if your prayers weren't meant to sound like an empty monologue uttered into thin air, but an active partnership that changes everything? The Bible reveals something far richer, a dynamic collaboration with the Creator himself that produces deep fulfillment within our soul.

Well, today, on Insight for Living, Chuck Swindoll describes what wholehearted prayer actually looks like. In this study of Romans 15, we'll discover how to move from shallow, religious clichés to the kind of fervent intercession that storms the throne of heaven and unleashes God's power. Chuck titled his message, "Praying with Your Whole Heart."

Many things are not as they seem. That is so true of prayer. It would seem as though all of God's people are those who really believe in it and really practice it, and when we do, we really trust God and we leave it all with Him. Nothing could be further from the truth.

We say religious words and we fiddle around with moments where we reach the end and we've tried everything else, so we shoot up a word, hoping that somehow there might be a little magic between here and there and changes come.

But prayer, prayer was meant to be prayer with our whole hearts. Certainly the exception rather than the rule.

Turn to Acts chapter 12, and let's look at a rather pathetic example of those whom you would have expected to be people of enormous faith. After all, their theology had been honed by Peter. It would soon be shaped by Paul.

It was being tried in the furnace of persecution. Herod Agrippa was the monarch ruling, known for his brutality and severity and antagonism toward believers. We see a quick resume in the first two verses.

About that time, Herod the king laid hands on some who belonged to the church in order to mistreat them. Herod's plan was to do with them as he had done with James. Verse two, he had James, the brother of John, put to death with a sword. That's the man ruling the throne over the Hebrews.

The unsaved people were applauding his actions, and because what he did pleased the majority. Verse three, he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also. Verse four, he seized him and put him in prison, delivering him to four squads of soldiers to guard him, intending after the Passover to bring him out before the people. You know what his plan was. Another mock trial.

Just as this man's Messiah had been tried, arrested, and put to a cross. That's Peter's future.

On the very night, very moment he's there, verse five, prayer for him was being made fervently by the church to God. The end of verse 12 tells us that there were many gathered together there in the house of Mary, the mother of John Mark, and they were there for prayer. So we have two scenes. We have an impossible setting where Peter is in prison, and we have a place of prayer where the saints have gathered. Picture it in your mind. They are helpless to do anything about this situation but pray.

Back to the prison, verse six. On the very night when Herod was about to bring him forward, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers.

I have the feeling Peter is not worried. You don't sleep if your stomach is churning, if you're anxious, if you're worried about your own death, if you think they're going to mistreat you, you don't sleep. Peter's sound asleep.

And these believers are praying, praying for Peter. They can't go and release him. They know that God can and they're praying. So God does. Verse seven, "Behold." I love scenes like this. And an angel suddenly appeared in a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter's side and woke him up saying, "Get up quickly."

His chains fell off his hands. You know, angels can do that. And the angel said to him, "Gird yourself and put on your sandals. Get dressed. Put on your shoes." He did so. Then he said, "Wrap your cloak around you and follow me."

So he went out and continued to follow and he didn't know what was being done by the angel, that it was real, but he thought he was seeing a vision. Verse 10, when he had passed the first and second guard. They don't wake up. Angels can do that. And they came to the iron gate. It's all locked. But it opened for them by itself. Angels can do that.

And so they went out along one street and immediately, angel's gone. They do that. They show, they do their thing. They're gone. Hey. So Peter thinks, I'm glad I wore my sandals. Verse 11, "Now I know for sure that the Lord has sent forth His angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all the Jewish people, all that they were expecting." And when he realized this, he went to the house of Mary. Here we are, from the prison to the house of Mary.

That's where they're all gathered. They're all praying. Look at what happened.

[Sound of knocking]

Verse 13, "When he knocked at the door of the gate, a servant girl recognized, verse 14, Peter's voice." Because of her joy, she didn't open the gate, and then like a kid, "I'll be right back." She runs down there to tell all these praying saints. He's there. Okay, hang on.

And they said to her, verse 15, "Praise God from whom all blessings flow." No, they say, "You are out of your mind."

I thought they were praying. No, no, they weren't. They were doing religious things. They were going through religious motions. Peter continued knocking, and when they opened the door, they saw him and said, "An answer to prayer!" Nope, they were amazed. "What are you doing here?"

Supposed to be in prison. What's wrong? Whatever they were doing wasn't prayer. They were doing what we do a lot of. But we used to not admit it. Peter was still imprisoned in their minds. Zero faith. How's your prayer life? How's your faith?

I have a feeling that most faces as I look at right now have a worry list longer than a prayer list. And I say to my own embarrassment, there are days in my life that's true of me, too.

Isn't it about time that changed? Romans 15 can help that happen.

We turn to the city of Corinth where Paul is sitting with Tertius, his scribe. Paul pauses at this moment toward the end of the letter and decides to be very vulnerable, very honest. Now, he begins, "I urge you." If he could take them by the shoulders, "I would like to shake you awake. I'd like to get you engaged. I urge you, brothers and sisters." There's a need here.

As I read through the verses we're going to be looking at, four things stand out to me and all four make prayer come to life. First is an awareness of the need. What's the need? Well, he's mentioned it, but you may have forgotten, verse 22 of this same chapter, "I have often been prevented from coming to you."

So he has a need to get past the obstacles. Pray for that. "I long to be with you," verse 23. So he has a need for them to pray him to Rome. Pray that I might be able to catch the ship. Pray that I might be freed to do so. Pray that I might live long enough to be with you. Pray that the obstacles will be removed. Be aware of the needs. You cannot pray if you're not aware of a need. So make yourself aware of needs. That means you're engaged in life. You're not removed. Your shades aren't drawn. Your door isn't locked. You're in touch with people. The goal is that God be engaged in doing what we cannot do. So there's an awareness of the need.

By the way, this isn't just reading words on a page. This isn't listening to a sermon about prayer. This is to engage you. You didn't show up today to read a few verses on prayer. Give me a break. You don't need another sermon. You've heard more than you can number. Need to do it. Need to get engaged in it.

Don't wail or cry because there aren't many praying. You pray. And if we all do that, we're all praying.

By the way, there must be also a willingness to get involved. That's also in verse 30. "I urge you, brethren, by our Lord Jesus Christ, by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God for me." One of those few verses in all the Bible where the members of the Trinity are all named.

Second member is named first, the Lord Jesus Christ. Followed by the third member of the Trinity, the Spirit. Followed by the Father himself, God. Little tip, when you pray, pray to God in the name of Jesus Christ, through the power of the Holy Spirit.

When you do, you call down the authority of heaven and alongside you, the members of the Trinity stand and are at work.

I urge you by the Lord Jesus and by the love of the Spirit, now the key term, "strive with me." Listen carefully. *Soonagonizomai*. Soon, s-u-n, means with, agonizomai, agony. With agony. The word means agonize along with me. Struggle with me. I call that being involved.

You're not just tossing up a name to heaven, you're identifying with the person you're praying for. You find out enough to know what they're going through. You feel with them the ache, the void, the hurt, the need, what seems to be the impossibility, the emptiness, the pressure. And you take it on. And you agonize with the other one who is in agony.

You say, "Well, you know what? If I want to be like Jesus, I don't have to agonize in prayer." Check out Matthew, I was ahead of you. Matthew 26:37 where we read in Gethsemane, He grieved and was distressed. Oh, you agonize in prayer.

In fact, he prayed as it were, as he did, great drops of blood formed on the pores of his skin. That's agony, friends. What are you agonizing over? Well, you're struggling to release your will to God's.

You're struggling to accept whatever may be His plan. You are struggling to discern what He may want. In prayer, you do all of that. Lord, I don't know what it is you want. Lord, I certainly don't want my will done. My will is obvious, it's selfish. This would be the most pleasant thing for me. This would be the most relief, but Lord, not my will, your will be done. That's agonizing.

One man put it this way, "There's nothing automatic about prayer. Prayer is not like using a coin operated machine or a cash dispenser." Our God hears our prayers, every one of them. Every single one of them. He takes note of them. He hears the agony.

Paul finished his life, Second Timothy 4:7, "I have fought the good fight," same word, agony. "I have agonized the good agony." I've spent my life agonizing over these churches, over these individuals who have given me grief.

Without wanting to sound overly dramatic, there are times when in prayer we break the grip of the adversary. The grip of the adversary is wrapped around a victim. Our friend. The one we love. Our pastor. Our neighbor. The lady who's just learned she's a widow. The parents of the wayward kid. The enemy has come.

And when I enter into that situation, I agonize with the one who's going through it.

In his fine work, a spiritual clinic, J. Oswald Sanders quotes, "Satan's tactics seem to be as follows. He will first of all oppose our breaking through to the place of faith, for it is an authoritative notice to quit to the enemy. He does not so much mind carnal rambling prayers, for they do not hurt him much. That is why it is so difficult to attain to a definite faith in God for a definite object."

We often have to strive and wrestle in prayer before we attain this quiet, restful faith, and until we break right through and join hands with God, we have not attained your real faith at all. However, once we attain to a real faith, all the forces of hell are impotent to annul it. The real battle begins when the prayer of faith is offered.

It's like teeth in gears. The need presents and your willingness to agonize fits right into those teeth. And you work together. And you trust God to break the grip. I've made a list of some things that we often agonize with others over.

Longstanding prejudices to be broken. May I pause and underscore that? You weren't born prejudiced. You learned prejudice. You learned to hate that other race. You learned to hate that other religion. You were taught to be prejudiced.

When you come to terms with it, you have friends join you to break the bonds of prejudice so that you will no longer come to those quick conclusions because they are that color. Or they look like that.

Another is a stubborn mind and heart. If you've dealt with people that are stubborn, you don't need any illustration. Only God can break through a stubborn heart.

Addictions and evil habits. I've had two men share with me this morning, two men, just separated by the services, the worship services, of their battle with pornography. I so admire them for saying it.

Just standing there and looking me in the eye and saying, "Thank you for standing with me. I need help." I enter into that. He gave me his name. Both did. I remember them this week. I agonize with them in the battle for purity.

I suggest practical things, but I mainly pray for them. Territories that have been dark a long time and you're now in them. If you ever stepped off the plane in a third world country, you know right away what I'm talking about. It's like the darkness envelops you. If you ever stand before a group that's hostile, you know what darkness is all about. They aren't nearly as gracious and considerate as you are. The presence of the enemy can be felt.

When you're with those who are antagonistic to the will of God, it is a fight to get through it. Standing firm requires prayer when you're pleading with God on behalf of a prodigal. When you're wrestling with God and little things are getting worse and you're losing heart, that's when you agonize in prayer. Paul says, "Don't just toss up my name. I need more than that."

Pray about the obstacles. And because they would, he names three specifics. This is one of the things I love about Paul. Look closely, the preciseness of specific requests. Verses 31 and 32. Number one, "Pray that I may be rescued from those who are disobedient in Judea."

Some see me as a turncoat. Some were once my fellow Pharisees. Now they're my enemy. Some used to hunt down Christians with me. Now they hunt me down. Pray that as I get to Jerusalem, I'll be able to survive.

Pray that when I'm with those who are disobedient to the truth, pray that God will win the way. Second, "Pray that my service for Jerusalem may prove acceptable to the saints." What does that mean? He's collecting money through his trip across Europe.

He came to Troas and then he crossed the Aegean, remember, we saw it on the map, and then he came to Philippi. Then he came to Berea. Then he came to Athens. Now he's come to Corinth, and he's on his way back across the sea to Ephesus, and finally to Tyre, and then back to Jerusalem, to take money to the people who don't have enough food to eat. Pray that I'll get there with the money. That I won't be mugged. Pray that I'll be able to find success in meeting the needs, because the need is real. The offering is important.

And pray, verse 32, "that I may come to you in joy by the will of God."

By the way, if I could go back to that first one, in case you think it might have been a little exaggerated for him to pray that he'd be able to be rescued. Let me show you what he had in front of him. Go back to Acts again, chapter 20. Acts 20, verse 22. I don't hear many pages. Acts 20 and verse 22. Okay?

"Now behold, bound in spirit, I am on my way to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there. Except the Holy Spirit solemnly testifies to me in every city, saying that bonds and afflictions await me." Don't let the old English or the characteristic biblical English take away the difficulty of it. Bonds and afflictions mean exactly what they say.

I'm going to be shackled. I'm going to be tortured. I'm going to be going through mock trials. Verse 24, how could he do it? "Because I do not consider my life of any account as dear to myself so that I may finish my course and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to solemnly testify of the Gospel of the grace of God."

How wonderful of Paul to have that mentality. Look at 21, verse three. "When we came in sight of Cyprus, leaving it on the left, we kept sailing to Syria." I want to look at a map so bad. "And they landed at Tyre, for there the ship was to unload its cargo. After looking up the disciples, we stayed there seven days and they kept telling Paul not to set foot in Jerusalem."

It's real stuff. When we pray for a missionary that goes in a tough area, and I'm thinking of one of our friends that went to Indonesia, pray for that, that he'll survive. Pray that he'll make it. His family will not be tortured and killed because they're believers in this Muslim country.

Friends, this is real stuff. This is where we are today and if you're not careful, the comfort and the joy that we enjoy in this place will dull your senses. There are people hanging.