HEBREWS 4:14-16 The Privilege of Prayer

Recognizing prayer as the wonderful grace that it is  the ability to communicate with our Creator  while (hopefully) part of the daily routine for most Christians, the blessing of prayer was not free, nor is it mundane God intended to communicate with His creation  made Himself known to us through revelation (1 Cor. 2:10, 16)  requests the same of us through prayer (Phil. 4:6) Unfortunately, not all have this privilege  being such a foundation piece of our fellowship with God, how can we make sure our prayers are being heard?

For Whom Prayer IS NOT a Privilege Those who will not heed God’s word  prayers considered an abomination (Prov. 28:9)  these demand an audience of God and His favor, all the while continuing to ignore His own will revealed to them (2 Tim. 4:3-4)  seriousness of ignoring God’s will revealed (Heb. 10:29) Those whose sins separate them from God  the only thing that can separate us from the favor of God is our own sin (Rom. 8:38-39)(Is. 59:1-2)  these God calls upon out of love and patience to repent and He will joyfully restore their fellowship (2 Pet. 3:9)(Lk. 15:20)

For Whom Prayer IS NOT a Privilege Those who treat others unjustly  showing partiality (James 2:8-9)  refusing to forgive (Mt. 18:21-35)  treating spouse with unkindness (Mal. 2:13-14)(1 Pet. 3:7) Those who pray without faith  without faith, it is impossible to please God (Heb. 11:6)  asking with doubt in our hearts ensures failure (James 1:5-8)  must have sufficient trust in the power and goodness of God

For Whom Prayer IS a Privilege The sinner seeking truth and salvation  while not yet a Christian, God acknowledged Cornelius’ prayers because he was desirous of God’s will (Acts 10:4, 31)  Christ promises that He will answer the one who hungers and thirsts for righteousness (Mt. 5:6; 7:7-8)  Cornelius needed to hear and obey the gospel to be saved, thus God gave him that opportunity through Peter The faithful Christian  Christ serves as our mediator and High Priest  able to aid His brethren in all things (Heb. 2:17-18)  making it possible to approach God’s throne boldly (4:14-16)  and able to save to the utmost (7:25)

Conclusion With such a wonderful grace available to those of God’s kingdom, how can one be assured that God will hear and answer their prayers?  obey the gospel  hear  believe  repent  confess  be baptized  become restored  repent and pray to God for forgiveness