Our Prayers & God’s Will | Romans 15:30-33

Scripture

• Romans 15:30–33

About this sermon

Introduction: Last Lord’s Day we had the opportunity to look at Paul’s ministry plans at the time he wrote Romans. Having the benefit of knowing how those plans turned out, we learned some lessons about how the plans of the people of God should be formed. We saw that godly people: Form their plans submissively. Paul did that, and that was evident in the previous section. Make plans that never come to pass. In the case of Paul, there is no evidence that he ever made it to Spain. Make plans that come to pass in ways that they never envisioned. Paul does indeed go to Rome, but in chains. Make plans according to wise principles. We saw that Paul’s plans and ours, are not formed mystically — not trying to figure out what God wants by looking to our feelings or circumstances. Rather, our plans are formed by firmly grounding them in the revealed will of God. That is where our planning always begins. But even after plans have been formed in a way that accords with Scripture, we must still hold to those plans loosely, submissively, with mobility. We must recognize that submission applies, not only to the expressed will of God, but the secret will of God. As we noted last week: ESV Proverbs 16:9 The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps. This morning we see that Paul’s planning is immediately followed by something, not only vital to the planning process, but equally vital to what follows the planning process. OUR PLANNING MUST BE JOINED TO PRAYER. If our planning is to be what God means for it to be, then our prayer lives must be what God means for them to be. HOW IS OUR PRAYER LIFE? Submissive planning includes prayer. Paul ended the previous section with the hope and expectation that he would one day arrive in Rome in the fulness of the blessing of Christ (vs.29). Now, he appeals to them to join him in praying for that very outcome (vs.30-32). He gathers up everything that he has mentioned from his plan to go to Jerusalem, to the way that he will arrive in Rome, and asks for prayer in order that it might be accomplished. And from this appeal for prayer, and the descriptions that follow, I want to share 7 observations about prayer in the context of knowing and doing the will of God. • THE NEED FOR PRAYER (vs.30) This is obvious, isn’t it? But just because something is obvious does not guarantee that we faithfully practice it. If we are to plan and live in a way that pleases Christ, then we must be convinced that prayer is a must. We must be convinced that not only do we need to pray on our own, but we need to enlist others to pray with us and for us. PAUL DOES NOT JUST SHARE HIS PLANS WITH THIS CHURCH. PAUL DOES NOT JUST SHARE HIS PRAYERS WITH THIS CHURCH (“this is what I am praying about.”) PAUL FORMALLY ENLISTS THE PRAYERS OF THIS CHURCH. He does this in a way that binds them to pray. He does this in a way that makes their prayers a matter of obedience to Christ Himself. We talked last week about an arrogant and evil approach to making plans. When we plan in a way that is not consciously submitted to God — that is evil and presumptuous. But it is equally true to say, that we can make plans, conscious that our plans are subject to God’s will in the ultimate sense, AND STILL BE PRESUMPTUOUS by not appealing to God for His help. A prayerless navigation of life is a proud navigation of life. ARE YOU AWARE OF YOUR NEEDINESS? ARE YOU AWARE OF A NEEDINESS THAT REQUIRES THE HELP OF OTHERS? You DO NOT if you are not praying and if you do not ask for prayer. The accurate sense of neediness before God is evidenced by the acute sense of our need for prayer. • THE MOTIVATION FOR PRAYER (vs.30) Paul appeals for prayer in a way that offers binding motivations. “I’m asking you to pray for me in a way that makes plain why you must.” QUESTION: Must we pray for each other? The question is not whether we should, whether it would be a good thing, a nice thing, a loving thing — is it a matter of obedience? Are we bound by what is right in the sight of God, to join in prayer for each other? Are we obligated to pray? Is prayer a matter for righteous living? Is prayer a manifestation of love for God and love for people? The Bible makes clear that it is. Paul’s stated motivations indicate that. He gives us three binding motivations for prayer. One motivation is expressed implicitly, two others are expressed explicitly. • THE LOYALTY THAT BELONGS TO GOD’S FAMILY REQUIRES

Topics

• Prayer