CHAPTER V
HOW TO PRAY THE PRAYER OF FAITH.
One of the conditions set forth in chapter one for
receiving what God has promised us in His Word is that we
must ask. We receive only what we personally appropriate
by faith in prayer. Faith is the envelope in which every
request to God must be placed. Often you will hear some
Christian say "I have asked and asked but still I do not
receive." Why is this? This is because many do not know
how to pray the prayer of faith. Jesus' own disciples
confessed that they needed to be taught how to pray, for
they asked, "Lord, teach us to pray" (Luke 11:1).
There is a correct way to accomplish anything we
undertake to do in order to achieve the desired result,
but too few realize this is especially true of prayer.
Failure to realize this is why many prayers are ineffec-
tive and remain unanswered. The Scriptures teach that
there are certain essential principles of prayer which we
must observe if our prayer are to be effective.
1. PRAY WITH A REPENTANT HEART.
Confession is the first requirement for effective
prayer. Remove by confession any obstacle of sin or unfai-
thfulness which would constitute a barrier between you and
the Lord. David said "if I regard iniquity in my heart,
the Lord will not hear me" (Psalms 66:18). James speaks
of the necessity of confession in connection with the
prayer of faith for healing the sick (James 5:14-16). See
I John 1:8-10; 3:20-22. Unconfessed sin, whether of the
spirit, such as pride, selfishness, doubt, hate, etc., or
sins of the flesh can constitute a hindrance to your
prayers.
2. PRAY WITH A FORGIVING SPIRIT.
Effective prayer stems from a right relationship betw-
een you and your brother as well as between you and God.
Jesus, after setting forth the principles of the prayer of
faith in Mark 11:22-24, then continues his teaching in
verses 25-26 saying, "and when ye stand praying, forgive,
if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which
is in heaven may forgive your trespasses. But if ye do not
forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven for-
give your trespasses."
3. PRAY IN JESUS' NAME.
It is only through Christ that we have access to the
Father, "for through him we...have access by one Spirit
unto the Father" (Ephesians 2:18). Many ignore this essen-
tial requirement by praying to the Father, but neglecting
to do it in Jesus' Name. This is not according to Scrip-
ture, for we are told: "whatsoever ye do in word or deed,
do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to
God and the Father by him" (Colossians 3:17). Jesus said
"whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will
give it to you" (John 16:23-24).
4. PRAY ACCORDING TO THE WILL OF GOD.
Obviously God cannot answer a prayer contrary to His
will. John says: "And this is the confidence that we have
in him, that, if we ask anything according to his will, he
heareth us: And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we
ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of
him" (I John 5:14-15). This indicates the importance of
the first condition for receiving by faith set forth in
chapter one, that is, we must base our faith on what God
has promised us in His Word. One could not pray for God to
reveal to him the date of the Second Advent, for example,
since God has already declared this event is known but to
Him.
Nor could one expect God to forgive him his trespasses
if he were unwilling to forgive his brother (Mark 11:22-
26). Praying for forgiveness will be in vain inasmuch as
it is praying contrary to the revealed will of God. On the
other hand, the Christian can pray for the healing of his
diseases (James 5:14-15; Isaiah 53:4-5), or God's prov-
ision for his material needs (Matthew 6:33; Philippians 4:
6,19), since we have this promised to us in His Word.
5. PRAY WITH EXPECTATION.
It should be evident that if we are to pray the prayer
of faith we must pray expecting an answer, yet many fail
at the most crucial point. We may meet the other condit-
ions of prayer, but we do not receive until faith begins
to ask. Jesus said, "All things whatsoever ye shall ask in
prayer, believing, ye shall receive" (Matthew 21:22).
Praying in faith is simply believing that God will do for
you what he promises to do in His Word. You can pray with
only as much faith as you have in Christ Himself and are
willing to trust Him. To the extent you believe Him--this
is the extent of your faith. Thus if we do not receive, it
is only because we do not really believe. He will do what
He promises to do. Prayer only knocks on the door; faith
is the key that unlocks it!
Dr. Hobart E. Freeman was businessman in St. Petersburg,
Florida, for a number of years until his conversion to
Christ in 1952. Called into the ministry shortly
thereafter, he was educated at Georgetown College and the
Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, completing his
studies at Grace Theological Seminary, where he taught
Old Testament,Hebrew, Philosophy, and Ethics before
assuming his ministry as pastor, author, Bible teacher,
and conference speaker. During his lifetime, Dr. Freeman
traveled extensively teaching an end-time message of
Faith, Deliverance, and the Deeper Life in the Spirit. He
also authored several books and tracts on those subjcts,
all of which are still in print.
BOOKS
Faith for Healing
Biblical Thinking and Confession
How to know God's Will
Why Speak in Tongues?
Deeper Life in the Spirit
Charismatic Body Ministry
Did Jesus Die Spiritually?
Every Wind of Doctrine
Angels of Light
Exploring Biblical Theology
Divine Sovereignty, Human Freedom and Responsibility
The Doctrine of Substitution in the Old Testament
An introduction to the old Testament Prophets
Nahum, Zephaniah, Habakkuk
TRACTS
The Purpose of Petecost
Occult Oppression and Bondage:How to be set FREE!
Hundreds of messages on these and other subjects are
available on tape cassettes. A free list of books and
and tapes may be ordered from:
FAITH MINISTRIES & PUBLICATIONS
P.O. BOX 1156
WARSAW, INDIANA 46581-1156
In Europe, contact:
VICTORY EUROPEAN MINISTRIES
P.O. BOX 204
SOUTHFLEET, GRAVESEND, KENT DA13 9LQ ENGLAND