Cross Road

Baptist Church

© 2017

Sermon Text

Prayer Still Works

13. And he (the Aramean king) said, “Go and spy where he (Elisha the prophet) is, that I may send and capture him. And it was told, “look, he is in Dothan.”

14. Then he sent horses and chariots and a strong force there. They went by night and surrounded the city.

15. When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early the next morning, an army with horses and chariots had surrounded the city. “Oh no, my lord! What shall we do?” the servant asked.

16. “Don’t be afraid” the prophet answered. “Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.”

17. And Elisha prayed, “Open his eyes, Lord, that he may see.” Then the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.

18. As the enemy came down toward him, Elisha prayed to the Lord, “Strike this army with blindness.” So, He (The Lord) struck them with blindness, as Elisha had asked.

19. Elisha told them, “This is not the road, and this is not the city. Follow me, and I will lead you to the man you are looking for.” And he led them to Samaria.

2 Kings 6:13-19

Prayer Prepares God’s People

The interesting thing about prayer is that the best prayers are performed in times of trouble. It is sad to say, but when people don’t need much, they don’t pray much. Need prompts prayer but the prayer does not need to be one of desperation but rather preparation. Elisha prayed to be prepared.

The Aramean king sought to capture Elisha because he constantly informed the king of Israel of their every move. This caused the enemy’s plan against Israel to be destroyed. This happened time after time until the Aramean king asked, “is there a spy among who informs Israel of our every move?” His soldiers replied, “No, but the Prophet Elisha is telling your secrets to the king of Israel … he knows every move you are making.” The king of Aram said, “we must capture him.” So he sent out an army to Dotham where the prophet was staying. As they advanced on Dotham, Elisha was already advancing his prayer request.

It is important to observe that prayer gives you insight. Elisha did not wait until the enemy moved to start praying. Elisha was true to his assignment as a prophet, and he prayed in advance to know what the enemy was doing. This put the enemy on defense and Elisha was automatically on offense. Because the Saints are on God’s side, they have the prized possession and that puts them on offense. Stop defending and start running with the possessions God has given.

So, Elisha had been praying long before the enemy arrived. He knew they were coming so he had already prayed for backup. Elisha’s servant, like many of us, had not prayed in that manner. He had probably prayed the basic security prayers that most of us pray. When he went outside that morning and saw the Aramean Army advancing, he freaked out. When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early the next morning, an army with horses and chariots had surrounded the city. “Oh no, my lord! What shall we do?” the servant asked. While the servant was a believer in God, he was not prepared. Whenever we are not prepared by prayer we panic. Two things are important here. First, you don’t need to know all the details of an enemy attack, you just need to know that the enemy will attack. Second, you don’t need to know what you are going to do, you need to know that God has already done something about the situation. The servant then prayed, like many of us, the panic prayer.

Elisha, then prayed another prayer. Elisha prayed for the servant’s eyes to be open. Notice, he did not pray that God would do something – he recognized that God had already done something. And Elisha prayed, “Open his eyes, Lord, that he may see.” Then the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. Please notice that God immediately answered Elisha’s prayer. The servant now saw what the prophet saw. His eyes were opened to see God’s forces surrounding them. This might be referred to as the revelation prayer.

Elisha prayed another prayer as the enemies advanced. He could have requested that God would smite the enemy with death, but recognizing that God is a God of mercy, Elisha prayed that God would blind the enemy. As the enemy came down toward him, Elisha prayed to the Lord, “Strike this army with blindness.” So, He (The Lord) struck them with blindness, as Elisha had asked. God had given Elisha a plan to capture the enemy that was attempting to capture them. Instead of leading the prophet back to the King of Aram, God allowed Elisha to lead the Aramean army to the king of Israel. Elisha told them, “This is not the road, and this is not the city. Follow me, and I will lead you to the man you are looking for.” And he led them to Samaria. Elisha’s prayer worked – because God was at work. It was the plan of God all along to capture the Aramean army. Elisha was led to pray in line with God’s will and we too must be taught to pray in that manner.

Are Your Prayers Working?

Now would be a good time to evaluate if your prayers are working? First, are your prayers being heard by God? If you don’t think your prayers are being heard, this does not mean you should stop praying. It does mean you should evaluate how you are praying and what you are asking. James 4:3 says, you ask but do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures. These pleasure prayers grieve God and He does not answer our requests. Many of us are like Elisha’s servant; we want to do right but we just don’t want trouble. That prayer for a trouble-free life is not only unrealistic, it is not a true prayer. Prayer still works if you pray right.

Also, when we are evaluating our prayers, we should check to see what is on God’s agenda. These uncertain times that we are facing are revealed in the Bible. The truth is, we didn’t expect for them to unfold in our time. Our “nice and easy” lifestyle is preventing us from accepting the fact that Saints of God do go through times of crisis. God is not only your Keeper in good times, He is your Protection in bad times. These signs of plagues in the land should be a reminder that God is preparing to move His people. It happened in Egypt. When God started plaguing the nation, His plan was to remove His people. Even if we don’t know the day of our departure – now is the time for us to pray that the eyes of people will be open. This modernistic age has taught that they have all the answers. They have been taught they have technology and science. Well guess what – its not working. Only God can bring healing and deliverance. Prayer still works if we would ask God to “open our eyes.”

Lastly, we should evaluate our prayers to determine if we are not causing the problem. It is interesting that the focus of ending the spread of the Coronavirus is based on isolation and cleanliness. First, maintain a safe distance from people who may be exposed. Second, clean your hands and use other precautions to prevent exposure. The truth is humans are filthy creatures spiritually and naturally. We don’t like to stay clean. We like taking risk and we always think that it won’t happen to us. The way to get through this and beyond this is to admit that we cause our own problems. Then take responsibility to do what is right. Did we actually think that God would let us get away without confessing our sin? Do we actually think that He simply ignores our wrong? God does offer a solution and a remedy if we would apply it. 2 Chronicles 7:14 still works. If My people, who are called by My Name, shall humble themselves and pray, and turn from their wicked ways, and seek My Face, then I will hear from Heaven and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. This is what prayer has to offer. It still works. We can take it or leave it.