29 Oct IHOP (International House of Prayer) I Heard You the First Time!
Can you imagine bringing a friend to a lovely restaurant and your friend orders over and over and over again! It might go something like this: “I’d like the filet mignon, please.” Then two minutes later as your waiter walks by, “I’d like the filet mignon, please.” Then two minutes later… “I’m not sure if it’s the will of the chef, but if it is, I’d like the filet mignon please.” About the third time your friend ordered you would be extremely embarrassed.
This may seem like a silly scenario to you, but unfortunately Christians do this all the time when it comes to their prayer life! If we want to know our prayers will be answered, we must have a basis for it. The right basis will give you confidence in prayer. The Bible tells us, “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for the evidence of things not seen” (Heb. 11:1). One translation says faith is the “title deed”. When we purchased our Joy Church International/WCBI building, they had to do a “title search” on the building to make very sure of who owned it. You see, whoever has the “title” owns the thing.
In prayer, there are two primary things:
- The thing you are praying about
- The title that gives you ownership
The Bible is a book filled with “titles” that give you ownership. A great example of this occurred with the Old Testament prophet Elisha (see II Kings 6:15-19). In this account, Elisha’s servant is petrified as they are surrounded by their enemy. Elisha undaunted, simply says, “Fear not there are more with us than there are with them.” Can you imagine the servant looking at all those soldiers, horses, and chariots and then looks at Elisha and himself…he then counts “one…two”. He must have thought the prophet was crazy. Then the prophet prayed, “Open his eyes that he may see.” To the servants astonishment here was God’s army that out-numbered his natural enemy greatly. You see, God’s provision was there all the time, the servant simply needed to “see” it…not with his natural eyes but with his eyes of faith (see Eph. 1:18).
The Bible is kind of like a window that allows you to see past your five physical senses and into the realm of the spirit which is actually more real! “Well Pastor Jim, I don’t know about all that believing in something I can’t see business!” We do it all the time. Every time you wave your hands you pass right through radio waves. If you had the proper antenna you could pick up these waves anytime. Even though you could not see them, they were there the entire time. You simply needed the right instrument to tap into what was already there. The Bible is the right instrument to help you tap into what is already there!
Healing is already there (I Pet. 2:24)!
Blessing is already there (Eph. 1:3)!
Victory is already there (I John 5:4)!
Deliverance is already there (Col. 1:13)!
Provision is already there (Phil. 4:19)!
Peace is already there (Phil. 4:6-7)!
Joy is already there (Phil. 4:4)!
It is so important to know what “titles” belong to you and then hold onto them…as Satan will always dispute them.
Next week we’ll continue our series.