Teach Us To Pray Part 3 by Apostle Joshua Selman: MP3 Download & Sermon Notes

Every gathering at Koinonia is a feast of light and a feast of the bread - the meal of the Spirit. In biology, we grow to the degree we are well nourished. Being malnourished doesn't necessarily mean you're not being fed - it means you're not fed in a way that supplies all the nutrients your body requires.

A balanced diet requires attention - what is too much is reduced, what should be there but isn't is added in the right quantity. One assignment of a man of God in building people is not just to teach, but to stay with the Holy Ghost and continue to vet what is about to come out.

The MasterChef is the Holy Spirit - we are waiters who receive the bread and meal from this principal Chef. When there is corruption in the quality of food, it means someone interrupted with the formula and menu.

You can trust what you're hearing - these are not cunningly devised fables. This meal was not prepared by man, only served by man. The bread came from heaven.

Review: Foundations of Prayer

In Part 1, we established that every believer is a king and priest, and the priestly ministry requires prayer. The house of God is the House of Prayer for All Nations. We dealt with why we should pray.

In Part 2, we examined Matthew 6: Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done.

The disciples were not prayerless people - they were people who prayed but it didn't work for them. "Teach us to pray - we have tried but we used a formula that was not producing the desired result."

Three Dimensions of Prayer

1. Fellowship and Growth

Prayer is a vehicle and tool for fellowship and growth. We grow spiritually primarily by the ministry of prayer and the Word.

**Four foundations for spiritual growth:**

1. Prayer
2. The Word (Scripture)
3. Fellowship (with God and with the brethren - corporate fellowship, community lifestyle)
4. Service

You can know as a believer whether you are growing by checking whether you are actively engaging in these four dimensions. If any one is missing, there is a dimension of growth you are not experiencing.

Key Scriptures:

Luke 9:28-29 - "And it came to pass about an eight days after these sayings, he took Peter and John and James, and went up into a mountain to pray. And as he prayed, the fashion of his countenance was altered, and his raiment was white and glistering."

As He prayed, transformation came. Prayer is primarily a vehicle that attempts to change you, not just change things. It is the change in you that can now change things.

1 Corinthians 14:2,4 - "For he that speaketh in an unknown tongue speaketh not unto men, but unto God: for no man understandeth him; howbeit in the spirit he speaketh mysteries...He that speaketh in an unknown tongue edifieth himself."

Edify = to build up (an architectural word). You grow, the foundation has been laid (Christ), now the superstructure is being lifted.

Jude 1:20 - "But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost."

**Growth indicator:** If what made you afraid yesterday still makes you afraid today, your prayer life is not growing. The mountain of yesterday that made you cry should not make you cry today again.

1 John 1:1-5 - John teaches extensively on fellowship with the Father and with the Son.

"That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ...God is light, and in him is no darkness at all."

**Important correction:** Many believers think fellowship only starts when visions come. They think you're not in fellowship when you pray until you see something, hear something, or feel wind pushing you.

Those things can come, but the basis of your confidence is the authority of Scripture. It doesn't matter what happens to your flesh - your understanding interprets that every time you engage in prayer, you are fellowshipping with the Father and with the Son.

There are people with strong prophetic inclination who can say "in Jesus name" and be out of their body. It doesn't mean they're prayerful - it's just their wiring toward the prophetic.

Your growth is not tied to seeing things in Scripture. Your growth is tied to:

• The degree to which you conform to the image and character of Christ
• The degree to which you understand the mysteries of the kingdom

2. Obtaining Promises and Making Requests

There is a dimension of prayer allocated for obtaining promises and making requests. You can take what is written in Scripture and make it your experience.

Hebrews 11:33 - "Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises."

The word "obtained" (Greek: katalambano) means to not only possess but to make it your own.

**Critical truth:** The fact that it is a promise for you does not mean you have it. Promises are obtained - they must become your own.

Genesis 1 - "And the house of Jacob shall possess their possessions." It is their possession, but it's not in their hands yet.

Mark 11:23-24 - "Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them."

Notice the progression:

1. **Desire** - what things soever ye desire
2. **Reception** - believe that you receive them (in the spirit)
3. **Manifestation** - and ye shall have them (physically)

It is not wrong to have a desire. Prayer is very important - you can obtain promises and have requests granted.

John 16:24 - "Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full."

God doesn't just want us to have joy - He wants joy to be to the fullest, overflowing and full of glory.

Why Prayers Are Not Answered: James 4:1-3

James 4:1-3 - "From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts...Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts."

**The root cause of conflict:** Most times when God blesses others and leaves you, the side effect is bitterness. Your bitterness will be routed through different channels - criticism, supposed correction, advice - but James is speaking by the Spirit.

Empty people talk most. The foundation for jealousy, backbiting, and talking is the absence of results you talk about in your own life.

**Three reasons for lack:**

1. **You lust and have not** - absence of results
2. **You ask not** - you don't know how to ask
3. **You ask amiss** - wrong motives, selfish desires

From Amplified: "You do ask God for them and yet fail to receive, because you ask with wrong purpose and evil, selfish motives. Your intention is, when you get what you desire, to spend it in sensual pleasures."

**The motif matters.** Heaven will not just give power, wealth, influence, children, or anything without asking: "Why do you want it?"

Examples of wrong motives:

• "Lord, give me a child so Peninnah won't laugh at me" ✗
• "Lord, give me a child - an opportunity to bring a priest on earth" ✓
• "Lord, increase my prayer group because my brother's is expanding" ✗
• "Lord, increase my church so people can see I'm not a nobody" ✗
• "Lord, I want people to see You in and through my life" ✓

**The kingdom-first principle:** Everything in my life is like a funnel - it channels everything into Christ. Prosperity, lifting, favor - all for the sake of His house.

Understanding the Will of God

Prayer is only answered according to Scripture when that prayer is within the boundary of the will of God.

John 9:31 - "Now we know that God heareth not sinners: but if any man be a worshipper of God, and doeth his will, him he heareth."

Ephesians 5:15-17 - "See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is."

Matthew 6:10 - "Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven."

**Definition of God's Will:**

The will of God represents every action that causes the kingdom to come and causes Christ to be glorified.

**Four characteristics of God's will:**

1. Inspired of the Spirit
2. Consistent with the character of Scripture
3. Able to cause the influence of heaven to be revealed in a life and territory
4. Ultimately glorifies Christ

Whatever does not subscribe to these terms should never be called the will of God.

Two Dimensions of God's Will

1. The Revealed Will of God

The will of God as known to man primarily from Scripture. This is the most accurate dimension of God's will.

Other auxiliary support systems include prophecy, visions, and dreams - but they all have high degrees of error:

• Error of perception
• Error of reception
• Error of interpretation
• Error from the level of renewal in the interpreter

You are safest when you understand and discern the will of God as revealed from Scripture.

Examples of revealed will:

1 Timothy 2:4 - "Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth."

It is God's desire - this is revealed will. No need to ask, "God, do you want my father to be saved?" Your prayer is: "Give me the strategy for their salvation."

Jeremiah 29:11 - "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end."

**Jesus as the revelation of God's will:** The Bible calls Jesus the image of the invisible God. Jesus came as a correction of the perceptions we had about God. We look at the life of Jesus in His earthly walk and learn God by looking at Jesus.

• God is love - we see it in Jesus (how He treated sinners, publicans, children)
• God is a giver - five loaves, four thousand fed
• God is slow to anger - "Do you not know what spirit you are of?"

Jesus became a demonstration of God's character. Look up to Jesus - the author and finisher of our faith.

2. The Permissible Will of God

The permissible will of God represents actions that are within the boundary of:

• Righteousness
• God's character
• Directly exalting Christ

Just because it's permissible doesn't mean it's not the will of God.

There are dimensions of God's will not stated directly from Scripture. At that point, we use:

• The tools of righteousness
• The tools of God's character
• The tools of the exaltation of Christ

Examples:

• There's no verse saying you'll live in Zarya
• There's no verse saying you'll have five children
• There's no verse saying "Pastor Alpha, marry Annie"

**But:** Within the boundary of righteousness, if you marry a non-believer, it's not the will of God. Within the boundary of the will of God, you can find a sister who loves God and whose life is consistent with virtue.

A job that makes you compromise your spiritual life, takes down your prayer life, or cuts you away from the community of believers - you don't need a vision, get out of that job immediately.

"What shall it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses his soul?"

**Principles for discerning permissible will:**

• Does this job compromise my walk with God?
• Will this help me be responsible?
• Is this person godly and virtuous?
• Does this align with Scripture's principles?

If the answer is yes to righteousness and Christ-exaltation, you can safely proceed. If God says stop, you return.

3. Decree and Spiritual Legislation

This is the dimension of prayer that does not so much deal with talking to God, but with rearranging realities based on the Word of God.

This is the dimension concerned with talking to:

• Things
• Circumstances
• Time
• Demons
• Elements of creation

To line them up with the will of God. This is the realm where words become like arrows - instruments of creation.

Key Scriptures:

Ecclesiastes 8:4 - "Where the word of a king is, there is power."

Revelation 5:10 - "And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth."

My words are not ordinary - my words are powerful.

Proverbs 18:21 - "Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof."

Death and life are not in the nozzle of a gun, not in the stone of a catapult, not in the edge of a sword - they are in the power of the tongue.

Job 22:28 - "Thou shalt also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee: and the light shall shine upon thy ways."

Isaiah 43:26 - "Put me in remembrance: let us plead together: declare thou, that thou mayest be justified."

Declare yourself acquitted. Come out of that situation by making decrees in prayer.

"In this family, nobody rises? In the name of Jesus, I decree I declare that the yoke that keeps men down - I am exempted."

Isaiah 41:21 - "Produce your cause, saith the Lord; bring forth your strong reasons, saith the King of Jacob."

This is like a law court - bring the basis for why such and such should happen to you. Why should God lift your family? Why should God promote you? Bring forth your strong reasons.

**Many people are prayerful but prayers are worthless** - they pray amiss, outside the jurisdiction and methodologies of the Word. This is the missing link where the disciples missed it.

Jesus's first dimension of growth as revealed in Scripture is getting the Word first, then we see Him praying. His prayer was consistent with Scripture: "If it be Thy will."

Rules of Engagement in Prayer

Rule #1: Approach from the Standpoint of God's Love and Christ's Victory

Prayer must be approached from two standpoints:

**1. The Love of God** - The awareness of the Fatherhood of God. Once I am within the will of God, God is not withholding anything. This gives confidence to approach Him.

**2. The Victory of Christ Jesus** - This is critical.

Whether it is warfare or spiritual decree and legislation, you are already a victim if you do not realize that victory is the basis from which we approach prayer.

**We do not approach prayer to win - we approach prayer to establish realities already won in Christ.**

Ephesians 1:3 - "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ."

God has already blessed us. Whether we pray or decree, we are taking advantage of the victory that Christ has already won and superimposing it upon the rebellion of darkness.

David already won before he met Goliath. What he did was establish victory. He said, "I'm here to bring down your head and give it to the birds" - he vanished Goliath.

Revelation 13:8 - From the foundations of the earth, the Lamb was slain. Jesus's dying was not negating what He did in prophecy - His dying was giving it expression.

**I believe in warfare. I believe in casting out demons. But my approach is from the standpoint of victory.**

I never approach life to win - I approach life to establish victory. I never cast out devils as the basis of victory - I cast them out because the Bible tells me I already have authority.

You are already blessed - that's why you prosper. Prosperity is manifesting the blessing on you. You are blessed with:

• Wisdom
• Relationships
• Favor
• Divine direction

These are true riches. When you engage them and they produce prosperity, it's not when money comes that you are blessed. Money comes as a receipt that it is true you are blessed.

**This awareness changes everything:** You are victorious. You are blessed. Everyone on earth owes you because your Father owns the universe.

I don't approach prayer hoping God will answer me. I don't pray if it's not the will of God. If I'm confused, I inquire in prayer and the spirit of Revelation opens Scripture. I only pray when I'm sure of the will of God.

When you know this, your prayer becomes reaching because every time you pray, you should be doing one or more of the following:

1. Fellowship
2. Interceding for souls
3. Speaking over territories
4. Walking in Dominion

Practical Application: Making Decrees

**When to pray:** Any time is right for prayer. Any time is conducive for prayer.

Examples of decrees:

• "My day is blessed in the name of Jesus"
• "I remove accidents from my day, I remove trouble from my day"
• "Lord, I bless my shop, I bless this site, I declare every troublemaker is far from all that I do"
• "The rod of the wicked will not rest upon the lot of the righteous"
• Over a new phone: "In the name of Jesus, I declare that within the time this phone is with me, it will serve me. I will not answer evil calls."
• Over a new car: "I decree and declare the hand of the Lord is upon this vehicle"
• Over a new house: "In the name of Jesus, this is the habitation of the Lord"
• Over a new semester: "I declare excellence, I call forth favor, I call forth recovery"

**For couples:** Pray with your children

**For business people:** Pray over your business

**For men of God:** Pray over your ministry

**Pray all the time** in these dimensions of prayer

Final Exhortation

Your prayer life must come back alive. If you leave this place and your prayer life is down, you are doing yourself and your destiny a disservice.

Luke 18:1 - "Men ought always to pray, and not to faint."

There is nobody with Grace who should not be a person of prayer. Find time. God will help you.

Decree and speak over things. Pray as a couple, pray with your children, pray as business people, pray as men of God - pray all the time in these dimensions of prayer, and watch your life continue to rise.

**Minimum commitment:**

• Pray everyday as much as possible
• The laziest person in Koinonia should fast at least once every month
• Have personal retreats - at least one day every 3-4 months dedicated to prayer

When you do this, no power in Hell will bring you down in the name of Jesus Christ.

Conclusion

Psalm 66:18 - "If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me."

Prayer is only for people who have clean lives before Jesus. Make your life right with God.

God loves you. God is able. Therefore there is no restraint from Him giving you the anointing, lifting you up. God loves you and God is able.

If you do not obtain, it means your heart is selfish, your motif is wrong, or you are praying outside of His will.

Your prayer life cannot go down when you see the necessity of prayer:

• Without prayer, my fellowship will be bankrupt
• Without prayer, I cannot obtain promises
• Without prayer, I cannot create a climate of the Word of God in my life

Let prayer change you. Most people's prayer is not changing them because it's not derived from knowledge.