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Right where we're there in James chapter number five I'd like to I'd like you to keep your place there in James 5 and put a ribbon or a bookmark or something there because we're Going to come back to James 5 throughout the sermon tonight But go with me to the book of first Kings first Kings chapter number 17 So keep your place there in James 5 and then find in the Old Testament first Kings chapter 17 And all of the first and second books are all clustered together in the Old Testament You got first second Samuel first second Kings first second Chronicles if you find them all they're all together there first Kings chapter 17 and Then do me a favor put a ribbon or bookmark there in first Kings 17 because we're gonna go back and forth between first Kings 17 and James chapter 5 Quite a bit tonight, we're gonna look at a lot of passages tonight, but we're gonna go between those two And there's a third one I'll give you here in a second, but we started this series last week Entitled the times of Elijah and we began last week with this kind of an introductory type sermon Where we just talked about Elijah and everything the Bible says about Elijah, it's not really found in the story of Elijah tonight We're gonna begin the story of Elijah, but I'll be honest with you We're gonna get through one verse tonight in his story And we're gonna look at a lot of other passages and make applications and then starting next week we're gonna start going verse by verse like we normally do through a Chapter a book of the Bible, but I want you to notice there in first Kings 17 in verse 1 The Bible says this and Elijah the Tishbite who was of the inhabitants of Gilead Said unto Ahab as the Lord God of Israel liveth before whom I stand there shall not be due nor rain these years But according to my word when we begin the story of Elijah it begins right here in first Kings chapter 17 and verse number one now once you notice that there's no real introduction to Elijah It just begins with an Elijah the Tishbite who was of the inhabitants of Gilead Said unto Ahab and it tells us about it just begins the story of Elijah And there's he Elijah just kind of steps onto the scene Here in this first verse of this chapter and he's thrust into the halls of history and he seemingly comes out of nowhere You know, it's it's interesting because we don't learn anything about his education. We don't learn anything about his upbringing We don't learn anything about his testimony. We don't Learn anything of that. We don't know we don't learn that Elijah was born and raised in a good godly Christian home and he you know did right his whole life or we don't know that Elijah was saved later in life and he was a drunkard and he was a You know lived in sin and then had some great conversion. We don't hear any of that We don't hear that. He went to college. We don't hear that. He got educated We don't learn any of that and you know, you say well, what's the reason for that? You know, it seems to me that all of that was not important enough to even mention because you know We shouldn't judge Christianity based on our past, you know, some some people have these testimonies of you know I was a gangster and I was this and I was that and I was in prison and look praise the Lord for whatever the Lord is that in your life, but we need to be careful when we give our testimonies to not glorify sin in our past You know whether or not you came out of a terrible background or if you were raised in a good godly Christian home God Wants to use everyone and anyone equally and here we begin with this great prophet and we're not really told anything about his background We're just told about what he begins to do And if you remember last week We talked about the extraordinary life of Elijah and how he was an extraordinary man And I don't want to re-preach that sermon But let me just give you some thoughts remember from last week's sermon If you if you didn't hear last week's sermon, I'd encourage you to check it out on our website but if you remember we talked about Elijah's departure from this world being Extraordinary and how he got caught up in a whirlwind and uh, and and and chariots of fire and he was Never died physically was translated straight into heaven from this world and if you remember we also talked about Elijah spirit being extraordinary and how it continued on with Elisha and Elisha got a double portion of Elijah spirit, but not just that it also manifested itself in John the Baptist and we're told in the New Testament that John the Baptist Came in the power and the spirit of Elijah and then we talked about Elijah's afterlife Appearances as being extraordinary and how he appeared at the Mount of Transfiguration And we talked about how he will come back one day as one of the two witnesses in the end times Now keep your place there in first King 17 go back to James chapter 5 Why don't you be able to go back and forth between those places, but if you remember last week Not only did we talk about Elijah's extraordinary life But we saw in Scripture how the Bible highlights the fact that this extraordinary life Was lived and that an impact was made by a very ordinary man James chapter 5 and verse 17 Let's look at it again together again says Elias Which is the New Testament version of the name the Old Testament name Elijah. It says Elias was a man Subject to like passions as we are so all of those extraordinary things that were accomplished in the life of Elijah God highlights for us in the last verse in the Bible that mentions Elijah by name And I understand that he's mentioned as one of the two witnesses in the book of Revelation But the last time he's mentioned by name God highlights the fact that he was a man subject to like passions as we are so What I'd like to do tonight is to look at what? Transformed Elijah from ordinary to extraordinary I mean what brought this man out of obscurity where he kind of just came out of nowhere and impacted the world and Impacted his culture and impacts even you and I and his ministry continues on even with you and I and it will go on into The end time what was it that? Transformed this man from just an ordinary average obscure unknown man to someone who Impacted the world now you're there in James 5 and you have first Kings 17 I'd like you to find one more passage go to Luke chapter number 18 Luke chapter 18 if you start at the beginning you test when you got Matthew Mark Luke and do me a favor put a ribbon or A bookmark or something there in Luke. We're gonna go back and forth between those three chapters We're gonna look at other verses also But we're gonna go back and forth between first Kings 17 James chapter 5 and several references in the book of Luke So if you could get those then we can move quickly tonight And let's talk about this what made Elijah great was it his preaching I mean was it the preaching of Elijah that made him a great prophet a great man of God now Here's what's interesting if you think it was the preaching you're gonna have a problem Because if you study the life of Elijah and if you go through the chapters of Elijah and his life You'll notice that he doesn't do a lot of preaching in fact whenever Elijah speaks. He's kind of the type of guy He doesn't give a lot of he doesn't use a lot of words He just kind of gets right to the point and he gives his message and he kind of takes off So if you say well Elijah was a great man of God and Elijah impacted the world because of his preaching the problem with that is that there wasn't really a lot of Preaching in the ministry of Elijah. He definitely delivered the messages of God He definitely said thus saith the Lord, but there's not a lot of it. It's just he's quick. He's fast He kind of says what needs to say and he gets on his way some people might say okay Well, if it wasn't the great preaching of Elijah that made him extraordinary then it must have been the miracles now Here's the problem with that By the time Elijah is performing miracles. He's already extraordinary By the time Elijah is performing miracles. He's already well known. He's already famous or infamous He's already, you know, he's already a household name in Israel He's already made the impact the one of the greatest impact that he's going to make in his life He's already done it because one of the greatest impacts that Elijah made We read about in the first verse of the first chapter when Elijah is mentioned you say well, what is it? what is it that made Elijah an extraordinary believer a Believer who was able to impact and change his culture if it wasn't his preaching If it and here's the great thing about that you say, you know What should we be encouraged in the fact that it wasn't a preaching we should be encouraged in the fact that it wasn't a preaching For a couple reasons number one. Most Christians don't do any preaching. I'm talking about publicly standing behind a pulpit and preaching I mean think about our church, you know, there's a hundred and twenty some odd people here tonight and there's one guy preaching. There's a hundred and 56 people here this morning and there was one guy preaching, you know, so most Christians don't do preaching So if you've got to preach great messages to be a great a Christian and to be a great Man or woman of God someone who impacts the world then most of us aren't going to do it you say and even the preachers I mean there are many preachers who preach in obscurity many preachers who preach every week and they're not known or well-known or they're not Heard throughout the world, you know There's many preachers that that don't have the influence of other preachers and other well-known So you say well, it's not the preaching that ought to be a great relief to all of us. It's a relief to me I'm a preacher and I'm a pastor and I'm Relieved that I don't have to be a great order for God to be able to make an impact If it's not as miracles that should be a relief for all of us because unless you're someone that's Pentecostal You know, you're not doing any miracles. You're not reviving anyone from the dead You're not you know doing you're not partying rivers and you're not doing those things. Neither am I You say well, what was it? What was it that made Elijah? Extraordinary, I'd submit to you tonight and that's what we're gonna spend our time looking at tonight that what made Elijah great is what we find in First Kings chapter 17 in verse 1 and it's this it was his prayer life It was the prayer life of Elijah That made him amazing It was a prayer life of Elijah That made him unique. It was the prayer life of Elijah That allowed him to impact his culture in his community Like no one else now you have your place there in Luke just go back to 1st Kings 17 just real quickly Verse 1 and look at it again Notice what he does in the first verse of the first chapter that we read about Elijah 1st Kings 17 verse 1 The Bible says this and Elijah the Tishbite who was of the inhabitants of Gilead Said unto Ahab as the Lord God of Israel liveth Before whom I stand there shall not be Do nor reign these years but according to my word see what made Elijah extraordinary Was the fact that he caused a drought that brought the judgment of God upon Israel for three and a half years You say well, what does that have to do with his prayer life go to James chapter 5 We saw it before but let's look at it again James chapter number 5 and Look at verse James chapter 5 and look at verse number 16 let's start in verse 16 James chapter 5 and verse 16 in James 5 we have a commentary first Kings 17 1 Bible says this James chapter 5 and verse 16 confess your faults one to another and pray one for another that you may be healed knows what it says The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much and then James makes that statement and then he illustrates that statement in verse 17 by saying Elias was a man Subject to like passions as we are here's what he was saying He was saying Elijah was the regular guy was a normal guy was an average guy just like you and I are Here's the difference and he prayed earnestly What he prayed that it might not rain and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years in six months And he prayed again and the heaven gave rain and the earth brought forth her fruit And we see that it was his prayer life That made him unique and amazing here's what's interesting and we're not gonna cover this tonight We'll cover this in weeks to come But the next major thing that Elijah is known for is the story where he brings fire down from heaven on Mount Carmel and how does he do that and we'll see it when we get there through prayer in fact of time that we see Elijah Speak the most he's speaking to God in prayer and he has a great prayer that he gives to God where he requests fire to come down and That's what he's known for He's known for the fire. He's known for the drought and both are connected to his prayer time his prayer What you say well? Why should that encourage us? Here's why that should encourage us because you don't have to be a pastor to be a prayer warrior You don't have to be a preacher to be a prayer warrior You don't have to be a famous orator and speaker of God's Word to be a prayer warrior You know that you you godly ladies you may not be able to pastor Because the Word of God forbids it you might be able you might not be able to stand behind a pulpit and speak and teach And preach the Word of God because the God the Word of God forbids it, but you know that you can pray You know that a teenager can pray you know that even a child could pray you can be retired and pray You you can be a let you can be a man is just working a job a secular job You say I'm never gonna pastor. I'm never gonna be in full-time ministry. I'm just gonna be a faithful man I'm gonna go soloing, but you know here's here's the exciting thing about Elijah is what made it extraordinary What's something that we all have access to something that we can all do and it's pray and it's prayer But here's the problem most Christians don't pray Most Christians don't even understand the value in prayer Do you have your place there in Luke chapter 18 and just as we begin this this evening? Let me just try to help you understand the importance of prayer, and why prayer is something that is important I'll do my best, and then we'll get into the sermon Look at Luke chapter 18 and verse 1 Luke chapter 18 and like I said we're gonna go back and forth between the book of Luke and the other Passages so make sure you can get there as quickly as you can notice Luke chapter 18 in verse 1 the Bible says this and he's fake us parable unto them to this end and He spake a parable unto them to this end notice what it says that men are always to pray and not to fame That's an interesting Phrase there from the Lord Jesus Christ I want you to notice that Jesus did not say Jesus did not say that men are always to preach and not to faint Notice that he didn't say men are always to go soul-winning and not to faint He didn't say men are always to read the Bible and not to faint He didn't say men are always to go to church and not to faint, and I'm not minimizing any of those things I'm not the all of those things are important We ought to read our Bible and we ought to be faithful to Church and we ought to go soloing we ought to to memorize scripture, we ought to do all those things. But if there's one thing that Jesus said, there's one thing that you should never quit on, you should never stop, you should always do, you should never faint, he says, men ought always to pray and not to faint. That's not important Jesus felt about prayer. Go to Luke chapter 11. You're there in Luke 18, just flip back a few pages to Luke chapter 11. Notice what his disciples said in Luke chapter 11 and verse 1. Luke chapter 11 and verse 1 says this, and it came to pass that as he was praying, this is Jesus our Savior praying, in a certain place when he seized one of his disciples said unto him, I want you to notice what his disciples said. They watched Jesus pray. And when he was done, they said, Lord, teach us to pray. Isn't that amazing? I mean, think about this. The disciples sat there and watched Jesus preach some of the greatest sermons, not some of the greatest sermons, the greatest sermons the world has ever known. The disciples sat there and watched Jesus perform the greatest miracles that the world has ever known. The disciples sat there and watched Jesus raise bodies. And they didn't say, Lord, teach us to preach sermons. They didn't say, Lord, teach us to perform miracles. They didn't say, Lord, teach us to raise the dead. They saw him do these wonderful things. But when they saw him pray, they said, Lord, would you teach us to pray? John R. Rice said, all your failures are prayer failures. And I don't think we realize as believers how important prayer ought to be in our lives. And it's the one thing, it's the thing that took Elijah from ordinary to extraordinary. Go to 1 Kings chapter 17. Let me give you, just as quickly as I can tonight, I'd like to give you six thoughts on Elijah's prayer life. Elijah's prayer life, six things that we get from these passages. I want you to notice how Elijah prayed and how we can pattern ourselves. Because here's the thing. I may never preach like Elijah preached. I may never get to preach to crowds like Elijah got to preach to. I will never get to perform miracles like Elijah performed miracles. But I can pray like Elijah. And you can pray like Elijah. And we can have the same power and the same access, the same God that Elijah had. I want you to notice a couple of things tonight. We'll move as quickly as we can. 1 Kings 17, look at verse 1. And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said unto Ahab, as the Lord God of Israel liveth, I want you to notice this phrase. He said, before whom I stand. Elijah acknowledged the fact that he was a man who spent time before God. I believe this is a reference to his prayer time. He spent time. He said, it doesn't matter who I am. I'm coming out of obscurity. I know you don't know me. I know you don't know my family. I know you don't know anything about me. But here's what you need to know. One of the greatest prophets, the greatest prophet in scripture, the man that will represent all prophets and all of the Bible, we're not told about his family. We're not told about his history. We're not told about his testimony. But we're told that he stood before the Lord, that he took time to be with God. Go back to James chapter 5. Look at verse 17. James chapter 5 and verse 17 says this, Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are. And just notice these two words, simple words. He prayed. Could that be said of you tonight? I wonder if it could be said of you, if we put your name here and said, your name, and he prayed. Your name, and she prayed. Your name, and they prayed. You say, well, what's the secret to an awesome prayer life? You know, Pastor Mads, I'd like to be like Elijah. And I hope you'd like to be like Elijah. I'd like to be a prayer warrior like Elijah. What did you say? Well, what's the secret? And here's what I want you to understand. I think sometimes we make a little prayer that's kind of mystical, spiritual. I've got to light candles, and I've got to play soft music, and I've got to kind of get into this ultra spiritual mood. And listen to me. We'll find out tonight that that's not prayer. Prayer, if you just want to know, I'll just let you know right now, prayer isn't simply asking. Prayer is simply asking. And you say, well, what makes someone a great prayer warrior? What made Elijah a great prayer warrior? Well, number one, Elijah prayed purposefully. Elijah prayed purposefully. He on purpose prayed. Here's the question I have for you, do you on purpose pray? Do you pray on purpose? Do you purpose to pray? Do you take time out of your day to pray, to stand before God? You say, why is it that most of our prayers are weak? Why is it that most Christians are weak at prayer? And when we do pray, our prayers aren't answered. You know, here's the main reason. The main reason is because we just don't do a lot of praying. You're there in James chapter 5. Look at James chapter 4. Just flip one page back. James chapter 4 and verse 2. Main reason prayers don't get answered. Main reason we go without. We go without the blessings and the substance and the things that God has in store for us. Main reason we go without our prayers being answered. Here's why. Because we don't pray. James chapter 4 and verse 2. You lust and have not. You kill and desire to have. You cannot obtain. You fight and war. Don't miss this. Yet you have not. Yet you have not. Why? Because you ask not. Pastor Mendez, I don't have prayers get answered. I don't pray and just have these miraculous answers from God. Well, here's the first question. Do you pray? Do you spend time before the Lord in prayer? Could it be said of you that you stand before God, that you prayed, that you spent time? Because look, the main reason we don't have our prayers answered is because, well, you have not because you ask not. Go to Matthew chapter number 7. Keep your place there in James. Go to Matthew, first book in the New Testament. Matthew chapter 7 and look at verse number 7. Matthew chapter 7 and verse 7. And please understand this. I'm not talking about some little ditty before dinner. And I think people ought to pray before they eat. I think we ought to thank the Lord before they eat. But that's not what I'm talking about. I'm talking about do you take time out of your day on a regular basis? Do you take time to stand where you stop and stand before God and just pray and ask and plead? Matthew chapter 7 and verse 7. You said, I need some theological Bible college lesson on prayer. Let me give you a lesson on prayer according to the Bible. Matthew chapter 7 and verse 7. Ask. That's prayer. Ask, and it shall be given to you. Seek, and ye shall find. Knock, and it shall be opened unto you. Why? Verse 8, for every one that asketh receiveth, and he that seeketh findeth, and to him that knocketh, it shall be opened. You're there in Matthew chapter 7, go to Matthew 14. You say, Elijah prayed purposefully. Let me just give you some practical thoughts on this. How can we pray purposefully? Number one, not only must we pray on purpose, but we must structure a prayer time. You say, what does that look like? Look, it's real simple. I'm not going to give you anything you don't already know, but we need to hear these things from time to time. You have to have a specific place to pray. This is what the Bible teaches. You want to become a prayer warrior? You want to become an impactful Christian? You want to become a Christian that impacts the culture and their community like Elijah did? You say, well, I don't preach sermons. You don't need to preach sermon. Well, I don't perform miracles. You don't need to perform miracles. But you better learn to pray if you want to impact other people. You say, well, how do I do that? Well, number one, have a specific place to pray. Matthew 14 and verse 23, notice what the Bible says. And when he had sent the multitudes away, Matthew 14, verse 23, notice what it says about Jesus. He went up into a mountain apart to pray. And when the evening was come, he was there alone. Notice that Jesus would speak a specific place, a place where he could go. And he went up, and he went apart. And he didn't go with his smartphone. And he didn't go with YouTube. And he didn't go with Facebook. And he didn't go with the radio. He took a time, and he picked a place. And he went, and he prayed. And this is what Jesus taught on prayer. Go to Matthew chapter 6. Matthew chapter 6, look at verse 6. Matthew chapter 6 and verse 6 says this. Matthew chapter 6 and verse 6 says this, but thou. This is Jesus teaching on prayer. He says, but thou, when thou pray, is what he says, enter into thy closet. What is he saying? What is he teaching? Here's what he's teaching. You should have a specific place you go to pray. So here's the question I have for you. I'm not trying to beat you up or make you feel guilty. I answer this for yourself. Do you have a place you go? Do you have a, you know, here he says a closet. And you can have a literal closet. You go into to pray. Nothing wrong with that. But look, Jesus went up to a mountain to pray. He went to different places to pray. Is there anywhere in this world that you've set aside and said, this is where I go, this is where I go, to pray? That's not your dinner table right before dinner. Is there anywhere you go to pray? Because here's what I know about Elijah. There was a place he would go to pray where he would stand before the Lord and spend time before God. And he would pray. Go to Mark chapter 1. Mark chapter 1, you're there in Matthew. Go to the book of Mark. Just one book over, Mark chapter 1, verse 35. Notice again, Mark chapter 1, verse 35 says this. And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, notice what it says, and departed into a solitary place. Notice Jesus had specific places. And they knew this. People who knew him knew this. Remember when Judas wanted to arrest Jesus, he knew where to go, where Jesus would often go to pray in the garden. Why? Because he went there regularly. It was a place that he had set aside. And I want you to notice that Jesus had places set aside. And he taught that you got to have a closet. You got to have a place. And look, in your life and in my life, and if you don't have one, you should go home tonight and pick a place and say, this is the place. This is where I will spend time before the Lord in prayer. But not only must you have a place, you must also have a time. If you want to be a great prayer warrior, you have to have a specific place to pray. But you also have to have a specific time to pray. Notice there, Mark 1.35. You're right there. Look at it again. Notice what it says. And notice what it says. In the morning. In the morning. This was a specific time. You say, how do you know it was specific? Well, because of what it says right after that. And in the morning, notice what it says. Rising up a great while before day. Jesus, on purpose, woke up at a certain time. And he went out and departed into a solitary place. And there, prayed. See, Jesus didn't just sit there and pray right before his meal. He didn't sit there and pray. And nothing wrong with that. We had to pray right before breakfast and lunch and dinner. But there was a time in Jesus's life, every day, where he would go and pray. So here's a question I have for you. Do you have a time? I mean, is there a time? Is there a time when if I called you at that time during the day you wouldn't answer because that's just when you pray? And I'm not saying we should brag about the times we should pray. Obviously, Jesus taught that this is not something that should be done to be seen of men. I'm just asking for your own self. Is there a place and a time where you pray? And I'm not trying to make you feel guilty. But here's what I know. For most Christians, for the overwhelming majority of Christians, the answer is no. Because most Christians don't pray. And we go through life missing out on the power and influence of God. And we have not, because we ask not. Go to Luke chapter 11. Look at verse 1 again. Luke chapter 11 and verse 1. The Bible says, and it came to pass that as he was praying in a certain place, again, just highlighting the fact that Jesus had a place and a time when he would pray. You say, what made Elijah a great prayer warrior? Well, number one, Elijah prayed purposefully. He prayed on purpose. He purposed to pray. But I'd like you to notice, secondly, tonight, go back to James chapter 5. In James chapter 5, keep your place in Luke. We're going to go back and forth. James chapter 5, look at verse 16 again. Confess your faults one to another and pray one for another that you may be healed. The, why don't you notice this word, the effectual. The effectual. Not only was Elijah someone who prayed purposefully, but Elijah prayed effectually. You say, what does that mean to have effectual prayer? Now, go to 1 Kings 17, if you don't mind. 1 Kings 17. The word effectual, the definition is this, successful in producing a desired or intended result. It means effective. See, Elijah did not just spend time in prayer. But the time he spent in prayer was effective time. It was effectual time, meaning he was effective in his prayer. And you say, well, how was he effective? Well, I want you to notice 1 Kings 17. Look at verse 1 again. And Elijah the Tishbite, who is of the inhabitants of Gilead, said unto Ahab, as the Lord God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand. Notice what he said. This is what he prayed for. This is his prayer. There shall not be due nor reign these years, but according to my word. You say, well, that's kind of an odd prayer. When I pray, I pray for cars and for houses and for riches. He's praying that there should be no due nor reign these years. Where did he get that from? Here's what I want you to understand. Elijah did not just come up with that. Elijah is actually praying scripture. Go to Deuteronomy chapter number 11. Deuteronomy chapter number 11 in the Old Testament. You've got Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy. Elijah, see, when he spent time with the Lord, he not only prayed, he also spent time in God's word. And when he spent time in God's word, he began to read God's word, understand God's word. He began to see what the will of God was for the nation of Israel. And what Elijah did, what making him an effective prayer warrior, an effectual prayer warrior, is that he prayed. He lined up his prayers to God's word. See, he prayed that there shall not be due nor reign these years. And when he did that, he prayed according to the will of God. You say, well, how is that the will of God? Deuteronomy 11, look at verse 16. In Deuteronomy 11, we have a passage where God is telling the children of Israel that when they go away from him, that when they begin to worship idols and they begin to worship other gods, you know, he talks about the blessings that he will give them if they obey, but he talks about the curses that he will place on them if they disobey. And Elijah, remember, is living in a culture with Ahab as a king and Jezebel as the queen, where the worship of Baal is rampant. And the people have forgotten about the Lord. And he's living in a time where people are not serving God, where people are moving away from God. And Elijah reads in Deuteronomy 11 in verse 16, he reads these words, take heed to yourself that your heart be not deceived. And you turn aside and serve other gods and worship them. Verse 17, and then the Lord's wrath be kindled against you. So Moses speaking to the children of Israel, telling them, hey, you better be careful. You better take heed that your hearts be not deceived, that you turn not aside and serve other gods. You say, why? Because then the Lord's wrath be kindled against you. Notice verse 17, and he shot up the heavens that there be no rain, and that the land yield not her fruit, unless you perish quickly from off the good land which the Lord giveth you. Go to Deuteronomy 28 and verse 15. Deuteronomy 28, 15, see, years and years and years before, Moses had said, look, if you forget God, God is going to curse you. And one of the curses will be that he's going to bring a drought, and that he's going to stop it from raining, that he's going to shut up the heaven. He either repeats it again in Deuteronomy 28 and verse 15. The Bible says this, but it shall come to pass if thou, notice these words, will not hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day. And all these curses shall come upon thee and overtake thee, verse 23. And thy heaven that is over thy head shall be brass. And the earth that is under thee shall be iron. And the Lord shall make the rain of thy land powder and dust. From heaven shall it come down upon thee until thou be destroyed. You say, why did Elijah pray that it wouldn't rain? Because Elijah was praying according to the will of God. Because when Elijah read the book of Deuteronomy, he understood that when a people goes away from God, Jehovah God, the God of the Bible, that God said that he would curse the land that they live in, that there would be no rain. And so Elijah said, that's God's will. I'm going to pray according to God's will. And that made him an effective prayer warrior. And doesn't the Bible say, didn't Jesus teach in the famous Lord's Prayer that we ought to pray thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven? And look, if you don't believe the Bible, if you don't believe, go to 1 John chapter 5. If you have your place in James, you're going to go past 1 Peter into the book of 1 James. Into, good night, 1 James, into the book of 1 John. You're going to go past 1 Peter into the book of 1 John. You say, I don't know. God is going to curse the land and not allow it to rain if people forsake his word. Look, if you don't believe the Bible, just go on Google Earth. And find the driest places on this planet. I mean, just find the places in this world where it doesn't rain, where people are starving to death, where people have to deal with no rain. And you know what you're going to find? You're going to find places in this world that are inhabited by religions that forsake the God of the Bible. I mean, find the most barren, non-watered places in this world, the places that are inhabited by drought. And you know what you're going to find? A bunch of Muslims. You know what you're going to find? A bunch of Buddhists. You know what you're going to find? And you say, is it a coincidence that everywhere where people forsake the God? You know what you're going to find in places where people are starving to death? They're worshipping Catholicism. You say, how can it be? Because God said that he would curse a people, that he would curse a people. And look, when we're talking about the rain, we're talking about the economy. We're talking about God destroying the economy. Elijah was praying that God would destroy the economy of his people. Why? Because oftentimes when people are financially distressed, they're more open to God. That's why we get more people saved in the ghettos and in the rich neighborhoods. And Elijah was an effective prayer warrior because he prayed according to the will of God. 1 John 5, are you there? Look at verse 14. 1 John chapter 5 and verse 14. And this is the confidence that we have in him. That if we ask anything according to his will, he heareth us. That if we ask anything according to his will, he heareth us. You say, that's tremendous. I want to be a prayer warrior that gets my prayers answered. Well, then learn to figure out what the will of God is and pray for that. I love to pray the verses where God tells us, pray for this. When Jesus said, pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would set forth. That's one thing I pray every week of my life. You told us to pray for workers to go out into the harvest for soulwinners. I'm praying for soulwinners constantly. Why? Because Jesus told me to pray. And I know when I pray for soulwinners, I'm praying according to his will. In James it says, if any of you lack wisdom, let him ask God that giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not, and it shall be given him. And every week of my life, I pray, Lord, give me wisdom. You said you'd give me wisdom. If I prayed for it, I'd pray. And that's what Elijah was doing. He was praying. Lord, cause a drought. Lord, keep it from raining. You said, Moses, your prophet said, that if we turn away from you, that you would make the heavens rise and that you would keep the rain from coming. And that's how Elijah prayed. He was an effective prayer warrior because he prayed according to the will of God, because he prayed according to what the Bible already said. You say, you want to be a great prayer warrior? Learn what God's will is according to the Bible and start praying that. Learn what God desires and start praying for that. I've used this illustration before and I preached on prayer. But if my two sons walk up to me and say, one says, Daddy, let's go to Cold Stone. Amen. And the other one says, let's go to some yogurt shop. And I know some of you like yogurt. Guess where we're going to go? We're going to Cold Stone because I'm not into yogurt. I know it's healthy and whatever, but you say they're more likely to get their prayer answered when they pray according to my will. See, when they ask for something that I already want, I'm more likely to go ahead and say, let's go. I like your idea. And here's what I'm telling you. Elijah already knew what God wanted. Elijah already knew that God wanted to judge the people, that God wanted to bring a drought, that God wanted to use that to draw them closer to himself. So he lined himself up with God's word and he became what the Bible says, an effectual prayer warrior. Effective, because he prayed according to God's will. Go back to James chapter 5. Not only did Elijah pray purposefully, and not only did Elijah pray effectually, but I want you to notice thirdly tonight that Elijah prayed earnestly. James 5.17, Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed, notice this word, earnestly. He prayed earnestly that it might not rain. The word earnest there, earnestly, means with sincere and intense conviction. Seriously, believing it will happen. You're there in James 5, go to James chapter 1. James chapter number 1, and look at verse number 6. James 1.6 says this, but let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavers is like a wave of the sea, driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive anything of the Lord. God says if you pray wavering, he says let not that man think that he shall receive anything of the Lord. See, when we pray, we must come to God earnestly. We must come to God seriously. We must come to God intensely. We must come to God with conviction. And this is why I tell you, most of us don't pray on purpose. And when we do pray, we don't really pray because we see prayer as this religious tidbit. Lord, let me down to sleep, or whatever. I don't know it because I'm not a Catholic. I don't do vain and repositions. Lord, let me down to sleep. Or Lord, bless his food to our bodies, amen. And this is the same little thing that we say over and over again. But I'm here to tell you, that's not prayer. You want to hear some real, genuine prayer? Say, where can I hear some real, genuine prayer? If you want to hear some real, genuine prayer, don't go to church. Don't go to most Christians. You want to hear some real, genuine prayer? The next time you see some terrible car accident, where some baby is pinned down under a car, and a mom was waiting for an ambulance to come, and you'll hear some genuine, earnest prayer. You're not going to hear, Lord, now lay me down to sleep. You know what you're going to hear? You're going to hear a mother say, Lord, please don't let my baby die. Lord, please help my baby. You want to hear some real prayer? Go down to the emergency room. You're going to hear some moms, and some dads, and some husbands, and some wives really getting serious with God, and saying, God, please, don't let my husband die, or don't let my child die, or Lord, please. And this is how Elijah prayed. He prayed earnestly with conviction. You know why you don't get your prayers answered? Because our prayers consist of, thank you, Lord, for this food, bless our bodies, please help the missionaries, amen. And we never take time to actually get alone and say, Lord, please, Lord, will you help my children to grow up for you? Lord, will you help me to be the dad that I need to be? Will you help my wife? She instructs these children every day. I mean, we just never get real serious with God in our prayer. But that wasn't Elijah. Not only did he pray purposefully, not only did he pray effectually, but he prayed earnestly with conviction, with passion. Why don't you notice, fourthly tonight, that Elijah prayed fervently. James chapter 5. James chapter 5 and verse 16, notice what it says. Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another that ye may be healed. The effectual, notice this word, fervent, fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. The word fervent means having or displaying a passionate intensity, what we were just talking about, to be passionate about what we're praying about. Luke chapter 18, if you could go there, Luke chapter 18. What this means is that we don't quit on prayer. Like we're saying tonight, we pray it through. We pray through. We see it through. What this literally is talking about is the fact that we just decide we're going to bother God. We're going to bother God with this till God answers the prayer or till God changes the prayer. We'll learn next week in the When Bad Things Happen to Good People that sometimes we can pray out of a genuine heart and God just, it's not that he doesn't answer the prayer, he just tells us the answer to the prayer is no. Sometimes God tells us the answer is no and he makes that clear. We understand that. But until God changes our prayer, we must learn to pray fervently. What does that look like? Luke 18, look at verse 1. Luke 18 and verse 1 says this, and he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men are always to pray and not to faint. Saying, so here's the example of fervent prayer, that men are always to pray and not to faint, not to get tired, not to get weary, not to quit. This is fervent prayer. What does it look like? Here's what it looked like. Saying, there was in a city a judge which feared not God, neither regarded man. And there was a widow in that city. And she came unto him saying, she came unto him saying, avenge me of mine adversary. You think she went up to the judge and said, avenge me of my adversary. Now lay me not asleep. I'm sure this woman, she was getting in his face and saying, avenge me of my adversary. Notice verse 4. And he would not for a while. But afterwards, he said within himself, though I fear not God nor regard man, because this is an evil judge. He's using the illustration of a bad judge. And I'm sure it's not hard for us to imagine one of those. Look at verse 5. Yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her. Lest by her continual coming she weary me. And the Lord said, hear what the unjust judge saith. And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them? Here's a question I have for you. Is there anything you're praying for that you've just decided, I'm just going to bother God with this? I'm just not going to quit praying. I'm not going to pray. I'm not going to stop praying. I'm not going to faint on this. I'm not saying that you're going to pray 24 hours a day, seven days a week. But every time that you do pray, when you get alone in your quiet time at home, when you've got your place and your time to pray, you come to God and you say, God, I'm bringing this request to you. There's this issue. There's this health problem. There's this legal problem. There's this finance. I'm just bringing this to you. I'm just telling you. I'm just going to keep bringing it to you. I'm going to keep bringing it to you. Have you ever prayed it through? I mean, here's what we normally do. We pray something, we forget about it. And by the way, I'd encourage you to write your prayers down so you won't forget about them. When you have your prayer time, write them down and put a date next to them and remember those things. And it encourages you to go back and see the things that God has answered and the prayers that he has answered, he has came through. But look, is there anything you're praying for where you just say, God, you know what? And every time you pray. And when you do sit down to pray for a meal, you just stop. And you just say, Lord, I'm just begging for the meal. And then, Lord, don't forget about this issue, this legal issue, this financial issue, this health issue. We need to have an answer, Lord. I need you to come through. I'm just saying, is there anything you're troubling God for? Anything you're just trying to get the attention of God in heaven and say, God, we need to hear from you in this matter. And if not, why not? I mean, can't you figure out things to pray for? You need things to pray for. I can give you a list of things to pray for. You say, Pastor, I tried to pray. I don't know what to pray for. OK, let me give you a list. You're a pastor? Pastor's wife? This church? How about all the soul winners in this church? Say, Pastor, I can't go soul winning. OK, you can't go soul winning. Can you get on your knees for two hours from 10 AM to noon every Saturday and pray for these soul winners when they're out soul winning? And say, Lord, today there's 70 soul winners out there knocking doors. Would you please keep them safe? Would you please send your Holy Spirit before them and prepare the hearts of the people they're going to be talking to? Would you please give them the wisdom and discernment to be able to say the right things and answer the questions correctly and be able to lead someone to Christ? I mean, can you do that? Can you pray for the church services? Can you pray before you show up to church on Sunday and say, Lord, today Pastor will be preaching. Would you please use the preaching of the word in my heart and the hearts of others? Can you do that? I mean, can you pray for Brother Stuckey when he goes to the Philippines? Can you pray for the church in Boise? Can you pray for the church in Vancouver? Can you pray for the church in Tempe? Can you pray for the church in Fort? I mean, you say, I don't have anything to pray for. I can give you things to pray for. I mean, can you pray for the church finances? Can you pray that the church grow? Can you pray for your children, for your wife, for your grandchildren? I mean, there's things to pray for. Is there anything you've just decided and say, God, I'm going to bring this to you every week. I'm going to bring this to you till you answer me. I'm just going to pray it through. It's going to bother you. And I'm going to bother you. And I'm going to bother you. And I'm going to bother you. I'm going to cry day and night till you answer. See, Elijah prayed fervently and earnestly. I'd like you to notice, fifthly tonight, James chapter 5, look at verse 16. Not only did Elijah pray purposefully and effectually and earnestly and fervently, but Elijah prayed righteously. James 5, verse 16 says, confess your faults one to another and pray one for another that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer, don't miss this, of a righteous man availeth much. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. See, it matters how you live. Go to 1 John chapter 3. If you're there in James, you're going to go past 1 Peter into 1 John. While you're there, let me read to you a couple of verses. Psalm 66 and verse 18 says this. If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me. Say, Pastor, I don't get my prayers answered. Maybe it's because you have iniquity in your heart. If I regard iniquity in my heart, unresolved sin in my heart, sin that I'm just choosing to just leave it there, and I know God's dealt with me, and I know what the Bible says, but I'm just going to do it anyway. If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Bible says, the Lord will not hear me. And I've said this to you before. The emergency room is not the place to try to get right with God. Isaiah 59 and verse 2 says this. But your iniquities have separated between you and your God. And your sins have hid his face from you that he will not hear. See, it was important that it was a righteous man. It was important that it was a man who was living right. 1 John 3.22, are you there? Says this. And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments and do those things which are pleasing his sight. How do you get your prayers answered? By keeping his commandments and doing those things that are pleasing his sight. How did Elijah get his prayers answered? By keeping his commandments and doing those things that are pleasing his sight. By being a righteous man. It's always interesting to me, because in our culture today of Christianity, we have all these liberal Christians. And the main thing about liberal Christians is they always want to raise their hands, right, while they're praying. You see all those churches where they're just praying. They're just worshipping. What's funny about that is that in the Bible, you know that you never see the raising of hands connected to music or worshipping at all. In fact, there's only one time in the whole Bible that you ever see the raising of hands. And it's not connected to the worship time, the worship service, the worship band. Oh, I just feel so spiritual. My God is an awesome God. You know when it's always connected? You know what it's always connected to? Prayer. And it's always meant. I exhort, therefore, that first of all, prayers, supplications, intercessions be given. He says, I will, therefore, that men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands without wrath and doubting. You read the story of Solomon when he ordained the temple. The Bible says he got on his knees and he raised his hands up to heaven to pray. In the Bible, whenever you see people raising their hands, it's to prayer. It's always meant. And it's to prayer, not to worship. You say, oh, that makes me feel spiritual. You learned that from Joel Osteen. You didn't get that from the Bible. You learned that from that contemporary Christian church you used to go to. You didn't get that from the word of God. Because the only people that raise their hands in the Bible are men with their praying. But I want you to notice, what the Bible says, I will, therefore, that men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands. Not dirty hands. Not filthy hands. Not drunkard hands. Not pornography hands. Holy hands without wrath and doubting. See, it's the effectual, fervent prayer of a righteous man at a veil of mange. So we see that Elijah prayed purposefully, and effectually, and earnestly, and fervently, and righteously. Let me just give you one more tonight and we'll be done. Elijah prayed expectantly. He prayed expecting. You can go back to 1 Kings 17, look at verse number 1. And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said unto Ahab, think about the guts that it takes to do this. He goes to the king of Israel. He goes to the main man in charge, the man that can destroy his life, persecute him, put him to death. He goes to him and he says, as the Lord God of Israel liveth before whom I stand, there shall not be do nor reign these years but according to my word. See, Elijah prayed purposefully, and earnestly, and effectually, and fervently, and righteously. But he also prayed expectingly. You know, he prayed expecting God to answer his prayer. I mean, it takes guts to go up to Ahab and say, hey Ahab, for the next three and a half years it's not going to rain until I pray. Because here's the thing. If it rains next week, Elijah, you look like an idiot. If it rains in six months, you look like an idiot. And here's what you and I would do. Here's what you and I would do. We'd pray that it wouldn't rain. And then after the three and a half years, we'd walk up to Ahab and say, yeah, remember that whole drought thing for three and a half years? That was me. But see, Elijah did it before. He said, hey Ahab, just giving you a warning. Next three and a half years, not going to rain until I pray. And he fully expected God to answer his prayer. See, here's how you and I pray. We pray expecting God not to answer a prayer. And I'm telling you myself, every time I pray, every time I pray, I always tell the Lord, Lord, help thou mine unbelief. It's hard, Lord, it's hard for me to believe that you're actually going to do this. It's hard for me to believe that you're actually going to heal this. It's hard for me to believe that you're actually going to come through on this. I'm just confessing my faults to you, God, and my sin to you. Help thou mine unbelief, because look, we must learn to pray in faith. We must learn to pray expecting. Go to Acts chapter 12. Acts chapter 12. We're almost done. Acts chapter 12. I just want to show you this story. It's a fun story for me. I like the response here because you can see the humanity of man. Acts chapter 12 and verse 1, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John. Acts chapter 12 and verse 1 says this, Now about the time Herod the king stretched forth his hand to vex certain of the church, he killed James the brother of John with the sword, and because he saw it pleased the Jews, he proceeded further to take Peter also. Then there were the days of unleavened bread. And when he had apprehended him, he put him in a prison and delivered him to four quaturians of soldiers to keep him, intending after Easter to bring him forth to the people. And verse 5, Peter therefore was kept in the prison. I love this phrase, but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him. You know what, the early church's main response to affliction and persecution was prayer. It seems like the first thing they do is they just pray. It seems like you and I, the last thing we do is pray. We call this person, and we call that person, and we look at this, and we try to figure out if that'll work, and we see if we can transfer money from this account, and we look at everything. We call our lawyer friend, or our doctor friend, or our brother-in-law, or whoever it might be. We try to figure out every which way to get out of it. And then if nothing works, then I guess we'll just have to pray. But you know the first thing we should do is pray. There's lots you can do after you pray, but there's nothing you should do before you pray. And here the Bible says, but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him. And we won't go through the whole story. You know the story. God sends some angels, breaks Peter out of prison. In verse 13 the Bible says this, and as Peter knocked at the door of the gate, a damsel came to hearken named Rhoda. And when she knew Peter's voice, she opened not the gate for gladness, but ran in and told how Peter stood before the gate. Now get the picture here. Get the picture. They're having a special prayer meeting. They're having a special prayer meeting that Peter would get released from prison. They're praying and saying, Lord, please, don't let Peter die. There's already been so many that have died. Don't let him die. Get him out of prison. Do something, Lord. That's what they're praying. And then Peter knocks at the door. How do they respond? Rhoda goes in and tells the people, hey, Peter's at the door, look at verse 15, and they said unto her, thou art mad. You're crazy. How could Peter be at the door? He's in prison. That's what we're praying about. Isn't that how you and I pray? We pray, and then when God does answer, we're shocked. No way. And they said unto her, thou art mad. But she constantly affirmed that it was even so. Then said they, it is his angel. They said, no, he's dead. You're seeing a spirit. But Peter continued knocking, and when they had opened the door and saw him, they were astonished. Here's what I'm telling you. Sometimes God answers a prayer even without us being expecting. But that's not how Elijah prayed. That's not how a prayer warrior prays. A prayer warrior prays expecting God to do something. And he prayed earnestly and fervently. And then he goes to Ahab and says, not going to rain. Till I pray. And he expected God to do something. Year ago or a year and a half ago, Vijay, actually, prayed for Vijay. He's in India right now. But Vijay told me a story where they were having a prayer meeting in India. These group of Christians were having a prayer meeting in India because they were having a drought in India, and it was affecting people's lives. So these Christians decided to get together and pray. They're going to pray for rain. And they all got together, and he told me the story. I thought it was funny. The pastor got up, and he said, who brought an umbrella? And nobody brought umbrellas. And he said, well, don't you expect it to rain? We're going to pray for rain. Aren't you going to need umbrellas? Often, you and I, we pray for things, and we don't really actually expect anything to happen. We pray for things, and we don't really actually expect for God to do anything. James chapter 1 in verse 6 says this, but let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavered is like the wave of the sea driven with the wind and toss. Go to Matthew 21. We're almost done. Let me just give you a couple of verses. We're almost done. Matthew 21, verse 21. First book in the New Testament, Matthew 21, verse 21. Jesus answered and said unto them, verily I say unto you, if ye have faith and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, be thou removed and be thou cast into the sea, it shall be done, verse 22, and all things whatsoever ye ask in prayer believing, ye shall receive. That's what Jesus said. He said pray expectantly. Pray according to my will. Pray in his name. Let me give you one more and we'll be done. Go to Ephesians chapter 3. Ephesians chapter 3. Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts, Romans, 1, 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians. Ephesians chapter 3. When we pray, do you pray expecting God to accomplish something? Curtis Hudson said this, the possibility of prayer exceeds your ability to ask. You ought to think about that. The possibility of prayer exceeds your ability to ask. You say give me a chapter and verse, Ephesians 3, look at verse 20. Now unto him that is able to do exceedingly, abundantly, above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us. The Bible says that God is able to do exceedingly, abundantly, above all that we ask or we can even think. God says I can do more than you can even ask for. I can do more than you can even think for. You say, well, then why don't we have it, why don't we have it? You have not, because you ask not. And the truth of the matter is that most Christians just don't pray. There's a famous song in the hymn book. We'll sing it tonight. It says this, what a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear. What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer. Oh, what peace we often forfeit. Oh, what needless pain we bear. All because we do not carry everything to God in prayer. Someone said this, I would rather teach one man to pray than 10 men to preach. And here's all I'm saying tonight, is I wonder what would happen. I wonder what would happen at Verdi Baptist Church. I wonder what would happen with the 70 to 80 soul owners that we have going out into the community every week. I wonder what would happen with every teenager that is sitting in this auditorium, with every kid that is growing up in this church. I wonder what would happen to the marriages. I wonder what would happen to the finances. I wonder what would happen spiritually. I mean, I wonder what would happen in this community if just one person in this church said, I will be a prayer warrior. I will pray purposefully, expectantly, fervently, earnestly, believing. I mean, if just one person would say, I may never preach a sermon. I may never stand before a big crowd. I may never be known, but I can pray. I mean, if just one person would say, I will be that one. I will be the Elijah. You say, what made Elijah extraordinary? It was one thing. It was prayer life. It was prayer life. Here's a question I have for you. Do you pray? It's fire heads. Heavenly Father, Lord, thank you for your word.