Prayer Partner (I)
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The Life of Abraham: Living Out God’s Story | Prayer Partner
Bible Reference: Genesis 18:16-32
Big idea: God wants us to partner with Him through Prayer.
Prayer Partner (I)
Genesis 18:16-17
The men got up from there and looked out over Sodom, and Abraham was walking with them to see them off. 17 Then the LORD said, “Should I hide what I am about to do from Abraham?"
Why did God want to talk to Abraham about Sodom and Gomorrah? The answer can only be that He was looking to Abraham to partner with Him through prayer.
In this session we will answer four questions to find out more about God’s desire to partner with us:
#1 Why does God want to partner with us?
Partnership has always been God’s design.
Genesis 1:26,28
Then God said, “Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us...Then God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth and govern it. Reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, and all the animals that scurry along the ground.”
To be made in God’s image means that we are God’s appointed representatives. From the beginning of time we see that it has always been God’s desire to accomplish His will on earth through people.
God desires sons, not slaves
Luke 3:38
Kenan was the son of Enosh. Enosh was the son of Seth. Seth was the son of Adam. Adam was the son of God.
God’s heart toward His children is a Father’s heart. He is interested in raising children, not slaves. This is a position of honour, not dishonour.
God is good
Galatians 4:7
Now you are no longer a slave but God’s own child. And since you are His child, God has made you His heir.
Romans 8:17
Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in His sufferings in order that we may also share in His glory.
Out of God’s goodness He shares a portion of His power and authority to His creation because He wants His creation to be able to do great things too.
How does learning these principles transform your perspectives about partnering with God?
#2 Who does God partner with?
God partners with His people.
Genesis 18:18-19
Abraham is to become a great and powerful nation, and all the nations of the earth will be blessed through him. 19 For I have chosen him so that he will command his children and his house after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing what is right and just. This is how the LORD will fulfill to Abraham what he promised him.”
God is able to work through anyone and anything in the world, but God chooses to partner with those who know Him and relate to Him. Partnership is a privilege given to those who walk with God.
James 2:23
“Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called God’s friend.
John 15:15
I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.
In the same way that Abraham was God’s friend, through Jesus we are also God’s friends. This means God is pleased to make His plans and purposes known to us and invites us to partner with Him so that His will be done on earth as in Heaven.
#3 How do we partner with God?
We partner with God through prayer.
Genesis 18:22-23
The men turned from there and went toward Sodom while Abraham remained standing before the LORD. 23 Abraham stepped forward and said, “Will you really sweep away the righteous with the wicked?”
Pray about everything and pray for others.
Philippians 4:6
Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.
Ephesians 6:18
Pray at all times in the Spirit with every prayer and request, and stay alert with all perseverance and intercession for all the saints.
James 5:13-14
Are any of you suffering hardships? You should pray. Are any of you happy? You should sing praises. Are any of you sick? You should call for the elders of the church to come and pray over you, anointing you with oil in the name of the Lord.
1 Timothy 2:1-4
I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them. Pray this way for kings and all who are in authority so that we can live peaceful and quiet lives marked by godliness and dignity. This is good and pleases God our Savior, who wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth.
#4 Do our prayers make a difference?
God hears and answers when we pray.
James 5:16
The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.
1988 - Doctor named Randolph Byrd did an experiment at the heart department of San Francisco General Hospital. He had Christians and Catholics pray to Jesus for one group of patients while another group had received no prayer. The results showed that the group that was prayed for suffered fewer deaths and less serious complications need medical intervention compared to the group that received no prayer. A decade later, another doctor named William S. Harris replicated the study and had the same result. These findings were published in the Archives of Internal Medicine.
A lack of prayer also has consequences.
Ezekiel 22:30
“I looked for someone who might rebuild the wall of righteousness that guards the land. I searched for someone to stand in the gap in the wall so I wouldn’t have to destroy the land, but I found no one."
James 4:2
You do not have because you do not ask God.
God’s actions does not depend on our prayers, Yet, Scripture tells us that sometimes God will choose to withhold what He wanted to do because no one partnered with Him in prayer.