Paul's Prayer for the Church

2 Thessalonians chapter 1, 2 Thessalonians chapter 1, we're going to finish the first chapter before we get into chapter 2 and correct some of the errors they had theologically about the day of the Lord.

Before we do that, we're looking at chapter 1, which is Paul's consolation for them amidst their adversity. How is he going to console them when they are being afflicted, when they are being persecuted? He's going to praise them, that's in the first five verses, and then he's going to promise them about the coming Lord who's going to bring them relief and retribution on those who afflict them, and then he's going to pray for them.

He's going to show them exactly how he prays for them because they need to understand that. And this prayer is very important, where it's placed in chapter 1, is very important when you understand the second coming of the Messiah.

We'll show you that at the end of our time together this evening so you can put it together as to why Paul gave the prayer after he talks to them about the relief that's going to come to them and the retribution that our Lord is going to pour out on those who do not know God and those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. Let's look at verses 11 down to the end.

To this end also we pray for you always that our God will count you worthy of your calling and fulfill every desire for goodness and the work of faith with power so that the name of our Lord Jesus will be glorified in you and you in him according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul is going to report to them how it is he prays for them, and what you can do with this, these two verses, is examine your prayer life for the people of the church, for the people in your family, and look at it and see how it is you pray for those around you.

Think about your prayer life this morning. Just write down one day all the things you pray for, and you'll realize that most of the time we are praying for things that are temporal more so than eternal. We'll pray about finding a wife or a husband. Is that bad to do that? No, I think you ought to do that. But Paul never prays that way. We pray for our health. We don't want to get sick. We want to get better. Paul doesn't pray that way. We also pray for our finances. We pray for all kinds of things.

But most of the things we pray for are things on this earth, but have nothing to do with our personal lives in terms of our spiritual growth. Paul was all about the spirituality of the people he prayed for, because he knew that if they were ever going to accomplish anything for God's kingdom, they had to be walking with the Lord. That was so important to him, and he realized that for the most part they weren't. A good study would be just to look at Paul's prayers in the epistles.

Just one day go through all the Paul's prayers, record them all, write them all down, and then all of a sudden lay them side by side and begin to compare all the things that Paul prayed for and ask yourself, is this what I pray for? Because what he does is he opens up to us as he reports to them, listen, this is what I'm praying for you guys. You need to know this. If I'm going to console you, if I'm going to help you, I'm going to pray for you. And that's exactly what he does. And so he talks to them very simply as he lives out 1 Thessalonians 5, 17, pray without ceasing.

That's exactly what he does. Paul is one who actually prays without ceasing. That simply means that there is a God consciousness all throughout the day so that I am constantly conscious of God in people's lives. That's the way Paul was. It wasn't that he was closing his eyes and bowing in prayer every single moment of every single day, but he was always conscious of God and what God was doing in the life of others and bringing them before the Lord, either in mind or in spirit, but always bringing them before the Lord.

So he's going to show us exactly how he does that. Prayer was Paul's preoccupation. He lived out Acts 6, 4 with the leaders of the early church. They devoted themselves to prayer and the ministry of the word. That was their commitment. They wanted to pray for the early church and they wanted to minister the word of God to the church. That's how Paul lived his life. So we're going to look, point number one, at Paul's priority.

Look what he says. He says, to this end also we pray for you always. We pray for you always. You see, Paul could pray for them whenever and wherever he was. I can come and I can preach on Wednesdays. You're here. I can preach on Sundays. So I can preach twice a week, but I can pray for you all day, seven days a week. I can always bring you before the throne of grace, asking God to do great things. Paul did that. Paul prayed always. That was characteristic of his life. It wasn't just with these people he prayed in Thessalonica, whether it was Corinth or the church in Philippi or was it the church in Colossae?

He was always praying for people, asking God to do a wonderful and mighty work in their lives. This was the divine resource. In order for them to accomplish things spiritually, it can only be done through spiritual means. In other words, we know that we are saved, right, because of God's call. And yet, we know that we're justified, but there needs to be a sanctification, a growth that's going to be accomplished through prayer. That's what Paul does. But Paul had a great balance because, you know, we understand what our Lord said in Matthew chapter 6.

He said, when you pray, pray this way. Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Which always begs the question, why pray for God's will to be done if God's will is going to be done anyway? If God is sovereign, and God rules over everything, and God providentially orchestrates every single thing that's going on in our lives, why would we even begin to bother to pray? We know what Job said in Job 42, verse number 2. He says, I know you can do all things, and no purpose of yours can be thwarted.

Job knew that. Job was a man of prayer. All you got to do is read the book of Job. But he realized that God had a purpose, and that purpose can never be thwarted. Well, if that's true, how is it when I pray? That works within God's providence. We know what Psalm 103.19 says. The Lord has established His throne in the heavens, and He rules over all. He is a sovereign ruler of the universe. Proverbs 16.33, the lot is cast into the lap, but every decision is from the Lord. You can cast lots, but the decision is not yours.

It's always of the Lord, which says, okay, so if that's the case, and Paul was really big on God's sovereignty, and how God predestined everything to occur, and we ought to be that way. If that's the case, why is it what I even begin to pray? Why even ask God to do something if God's already got it mapped out and planned out anyway? That's because God commanded us to pray, and how my prayer works in and through God's providence, I'll have no understanding this side of eternity, but yet God has commanded me to pray, so what do I do?

I pray. Turn back with me, if you would, to the book of 1 Samuel, 1 Samuel chapter 12. Here's a good illustration of the prophet Samuel. He knowing that Israel had asked for a king, and they realized that in asking for a king, they were replacing the sovereign king in their lives. They wanted a king they could see, touch, fight for them, even though the Lord said, I'm going to fight for you. They wanted their own king, and so they realized the error of their way, and so in 1 Samuel chapter 12, verse number 19, that all the people said to Samuel, pray for your servants to the Lord, your God, so that we may not die.

They were afraid because just earlier, Samuel had called down thunder and rain during the harvest time, and there was no rain during the harvest season, but Samuel called for it, and God brought it to put fear in the people of Israel, and it says these words. It says, for we have added to all our sins this evil by asking for ourselves a king. We realize we blew it. We asked for a king when God is our king. Samuel said to the people, do not fear. You have committed all this evil, yet do not turn aside from following the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart.

You must not turn aside, for then you would go after futile things, which cannot profit or deliver, because they are futile. For the Lord will not abandon his people on account of his great name. God's not going to kill you. He's not going to abandon you. You are his people. His name is at stake. He's not going to let you go, it says, because the Lord has been pleased to make you a people for himself. Moreover, as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by ceasing to pray for you, and I will instruct you in the good and right way.

Samuel said, listen, I know you're afraid to die. You're going to be okay. You're not going to die. God has chosen you to be his people for his namesake, but you know what? I'm still going to pray for you. I'm still going to ask God to do great things in you, and I'm still going to instruct you I'm still going to teach you. Why? Because that's what we do. God uses spiritual means to accomplish spiritual maturity. It's through prayer and the ministry of the word. Samuel knew that way back in 1 Samuel chapter eight, and yet he knew what God was going to do, but he prayed anyway.

Like Daniel in Daniel chapter nine, Daniel knew that the Babylonian captivity would last 70 years. How does he know that? Look at Jeremiah.

He knows exactly how long it was going to last, but he kept praying. In Daniel nine, one of the great prayers of the Bible, as Daniel would pray for the people of Israel knowing that they needed to be restored back to the land, knowing that 70 years was going to be up, and they were going to go back to the land anyway, but it didn't stop him praying for the nation of Israel. Why? Because God uses your prayers and mine in conjunction with his sovereign plan, and how he works that out, we have no idea, but we can't let our theology ruin our prayer life.

We have to be men and women of prayer, and Paul was that way. It's like our Lord in Luke 22 when he said to Peter, Peter, Satan has desired to sift you like wheat, but I prayed for you that your faith would not fail, and that when you return, you'll be able to strengthen the brethren. The Lord is sovereign. The Lord knows. The Lord knows the sovereign plan of God. The Lord knows that Peter is going to be restored, but what does he say? Peter, I prayed for you, so that when you return, you'll be able to strengthen your brethren.

You see, prayer works in conjunction with God's providence. We just don't see it this side of eternity. God commands us to pray, so we pray, even though God is in control of everything that happens. No plan of His will ever be thwarted. And Paul says these words in 2 Thessalonians chapter 1, we pray for you always. Do you know what prayer is? Prayer is always aligning my will with God's will. Prayer is not asking for my will to be accomplished for my purposes. Prayer is always aligning my will with God's will.

So when you watch Paul pray, he prays for God's will to be done in people's lives. He prays for those things that are spiritual and eternal, because he's aligning his will with God's will. Think about your prayer life. When you went to prayer this morning, hopefully you went to prayer this morning. Hopefully you went to prayer sometime throughout the day. Hopefully you pray without ceasing, but when you pray, how do you pray? Are you praying for your own desires, your own wants? Most of our prayers are very, very selfish.

James says you have not because you don't ask, but when you finally do ask, you ask that you might consume it upon your own lusts.

No wonder we have a problem with God answering our prayers. It's all about us and what we're doing instead of aligning my will with God's will. That's why our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Do you want God's will done on earth like it is in heaven, where it's perfect, where it's always glorifying and honoring to His name? That's the way our prayer should be. Lord, I want Your will done in my marriage as it is in heaven.

I want Your will done in my job as it is in heaven. I want Your will done in my life as it is in heaven. Lord, I want You to accomplish Your perfect will in my life. Lord, do whatever You have to do to make that happen, because I want to follow Your will. That's Paul. He prayed without ceasing. That was his priority. Now, Paul's prayer centers around five elements, and they all have to do with God. They have to do with, number one, God's plan, number two, God's pleasure, number three, God's power, number four, God's purpose, and number five, God's provision.

This is what he says. He says this, he says, to this end, also we pray for you always that our God will count you worthy of your calling. Isn't that great? Our God, not my God, not your God, our God. It's a term of intimacy, that you might walk worthy of your calling. That phrase, your calling, very important phrase, because it deals with God's efficacious call, God's irresistible call. It's not like Book of Romans, the 10th chapter, whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. That's a general call.

Or like Jesus said, many are called, but few are chosen. That's the general call. The general call is given to everybody. This is a specific call. This is the effectual call. This is the call that when eternity intersects with time, and you bow the knee and submit your life to the lordship of Christ. This is when eternity intersects time, and we deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow him. This is where we repent of our sin, recognize that he is our savior, fall before him and say, Lord, take my life, however you want it to be.

I want to serve you. I want to follow you. This is your salvation experience. This is your calling. It is the effectual call that he's talking about. So all throughout the epistles, when Paul uses this, it refers specifically to salvation's call. Let me show it to you.

Book of Romans. Book of Romans, first chapter, sixth verse says this, sorry, verse five, through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles for his name's sake, among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ.

Verse seven, to all who are beloved of God in Rome, called as saints. Remember, when God calls you, you're no longer called a sinner, you're called what? A saint. You're called saints. That's what God does. And so Paul is saying, you've been called a certain way. You've been called into God's kingdom. That means you're a child of the living God. And because you have been called, I want you to walk worthy of that calling. Then over in Romans chapter eight, you know these verses, Romans chapter eight, verse number 28.

And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God and to those who are called according to his purpose. He goes on to say these words in verse number 30, and those whom he predestined, he also called, and these whom he called, he also justified, and these whom he justified, he also glorified. It's a word that deals with their salvation. Same thing over in first Corinthians chapter one, in first Corinthians chapter one, to the church of God, which is that Corinth to those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, as saints by calling.

You are now saints because God has called you into his kingdom, okay? And so we know that no man comes into the Father unless the Father draws him. God draws him. It's called, as Paul says in first Timothy, I'm sorry, second Timothy 1.9, we're called with a holy calling according to his own purpose, which he, or which he has granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity.

He says, listen, I want our God to count you worthy of your calling. You've been called to be saints. You've been called children of the living God. You've been called to follow the Lord. Now, my prayer for you is this, that your life is equal to who you are in Christ. In other words, I want you to walk a worthy life. Why? Listen, do you know that before you were saved, you were unworthy? But now that you're saved, you are worthy. Romans chapter one, Romans chapter one, verse number 32, and although they know the ordinances of God, that those who practice such sayings are worthy of death.

Do you know that before you're saved, you're only worthy of one thing, death. But once you're born again, you're not worthy of death, you're worthy of life because God makes you worthy. And Paul says, I want you to walk a worthy life. I want you to walk a life that is equal to your nature in Christ. It's like this, we are unrighteous before we're saved. Once we're saved, we are now declared righteous. He in unison became sin for us that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. So no longer are we unrighteous, but we are now righteous.

Once we are unworthy, now we're worthy. And Paul says, this is what I want you to do. I'm going to pray that our God would take you and cause you to walk in a manner that is equal to your position as a child of the living God. If you're a father, that's how you pray for your children. If you're a husband, that's how you pray for your wife. If you're a wife, that's how you pray for your husband. If you're a pastor, an elder, that's how you pray for your church. Wouldn't it be great if everybody in the room prayed that every one of us would walk worthy of our calling?

That we live out our saintliness. Not that we're going to be sinless, nobody is sinless, right? But that we live out our saintliness because that's who we are in Christ. That we learn to practice righteousness, positionally we are righteous before Christ. We've been clothed as the prophet Isaiah says, in the garments of God, the robes of righteousness. So when God looks down from heaven, what does he see? He sees Christ's righteousness. But we are now to live in light of that. We are to walk righteously.

We are to practice righteousness. We are worthy in Christ. We are to live worthy lives. That's what we're supposed to do. Paul said it this way over in 1 Thessalonians chapter 2. He said, just as you know how we were exhorting and encouraging and imploring each one of you as a father would his own children, so that you would walk in a manner worthy of the God who calls you into his own kingdom and glory. He says, this is what we're looking for. We're imploring you, we're encouraging you, we're trying to stimulate you.

We want you to walk worthy. We want your life to be conducted equally every day as you are positionally with the Lord Jesus Christ. He says over in the book of Ephesians, Ephesians chapter 1, excuse me, Ephesians chapter 4, these words, therefore, I therefore the prisoner of the Lord implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called. Same thing. So whether it's the church of Ephesus, the church of Thessalonica, the church at Philippi, the church at Colossae, look what it says over in the book of Colossians.

It says in the book of Colossians, the first chapter, for this reason also since the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will and all spiritual wisdom and understanding so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord.

Same thing. Paul's concern is that people live in light of their calling. That should be your concern as well. Every one of us should be that way. When we pray for our parents, we pray that their lives will be worthy of their calling. For our children, for those in our church, when was the last time you prayed that way? What does that look like? Well, Paul says in Colossians 1 this way. He says, In other words, if I pray that you walk worthy, I am praying that your life be a fruitful life, that you walk fruitfully, that you bear fruit in every good work, that you walk bountifully, increasing in the knowledge of God, that you walk powerfully, that you're strengthened with all power according to his will and glorious might for the attainment of all steadfastness and patience, you walk patiently, enduringly, that you walk joyfully and you walk thankfully That's how God wants you to walk worthy.

Go back to Ephesians chapter 4. Ephesians chapter 4, verse number 1. I implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you've been called with all humility. I want you to walk humbly and gentleness. I want you to walk gently, with patience. I want you to walk patiently, showing tolerance for one another. I want you to walk in a way that's enduring. So you walk enduringly. And then you also walk how? Diligently, being diligent to preserve the unity of the spirit and the bond of peace.

This is what Paul always prayed for. All you got to do is read his epistles. I want you to walk this way. Live a life worthy of your calling. Look what it says in verse number 17 of Ephesians 4. So this I say and affirm together with the Lord that you walk no longer as the Gentiles also walk in the futility of their mind, being darkened in their understanding and excluded from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them because of the hardness of their heart. And they having become callous have given themselves over to sensuality for the practice of every kind of impurity with greediness.

I want you to walk separately. I want you to walk uniquely. I want you to walk differently. I don't want you to walk as you used to walk. I don't want you to walk as you did when you were unsaved. I want you to walk differently than you ever walked before. Then in chapter 5, verse number 1, he says, I want you to walk lovingly. I want you to walk in love. Be in tears of God. Verse number 8, I want you to walk brightly. I want you to walk as children of the light. Verse 15, I want you to walk wisely.

Be ye not unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is, that you walk in a way that demonstrates wisdom. You can go to 3 John and see, He wants you to walk truthfully, walk in truth. Summed up, 1 John 2, verse number 6, if you abide in Him, if you say, I abide in God and God abides in me, then you should walk as He Himself walks. Did our Lord not walk brightly? Sure. He's the light of the world. Did He not walk wisely? Yes, because He possesses all wisdom. Did He not walk lovingly? Yes, because He was the God who loves the world.

Did He not walk patiently and gently and fruitfully and thankfully and joyfully and forbearingly? That's what characterizes life. That's how we pray for people. And Paul says, I'm concerned about you guys, so much so that you walk worthy of your calling, that your life matches who you are in Christ. That's what I want for you. More than anything else, that's what I want to see. So he says, I'm praying for God's plan to be so evident in your life that it is seen in every manner of conduct. He prays for their character.

He prays for their virtue that would honor the Lord. And then he says, I'm going to pray for this. I'm going to pray not just for God's plan to be revealed in your life, but for God's pleasure to be revealed in your life. He says this. This is so rich. He says, we pray for you always that our God will fulfill every desire for goodness. Wow. You know what our prayer is? That God will fulfill every desire for goodness. Well, what does that mean? I'm praying for somebody else's good? Yeah, you are. But I'm praying for how God defines goodness.

We know that God is good, right? Psalm 119.68, God is good. We know that. We know that the rich ruler came to Christ who says, that good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life? He knew God was good. Christ says, why do you call me good unless you recognize I'm God?

Because only God is good. So we know God is good. So whatever goodness entails, God defines goodness. No matter how you might define it, it's irrelevant. Goodness is defined only by a good God who bestows goodness on his people. So however God defines goodness by a God who's good is what Paul is praying for. That God will fulfill all the desire of goodness. Hebrews 6.5, God's word is good. So if God's word is good and God is good, God's word defines what is good for you and for me. We might think we know what's good for somebody else, but only God can define that.

We can't define goodness only in light of how God defines it. So Paul says, I am praying not only that you walk worthy, that the plan of God be revealed in your life, but that the pleasure of God be obtained in your life. We talked about this a couple of weeks ago on Sunday morning, that God satisfies his people. That's what he does because he is a good God. Remember what it says way back in Psalm 22, verse number one, O Lord, in your strength, the king will be glad, and in your salvation, how greatly he will rejoice.

You have given him his heart's desire and you have not withheld the request of his lips, for you meet him with the blessings of good things. Only a good God can meet you with the blessing of good things. And then over in Psalm 31, Psalm 31, verse number 19, how great is your goodness, which you have stored up for those who fear you, which you have wrought for those who take refuge in you before the sons of men. Oh, how great is your goodness. Not only are you a good God, and not only are you a great God, but because you're a great God, you give out great goodness because you're a God who is good.

And then over in Psalm 34, Psalm 34, O taste and see that the Lord is good. How blessed is the man who takes refuge in him. O fear the Lord, you as saints, for to those who fear him. There is no want the young lions do lack and suffer hunger, but they who seek the Lord shall not be in want of any good thing. Those who hunger after the Lord are never in want of any good thing. But that good thing can only be defined by a God who is good, who defines goodness in his word. So Paul says, I want the goodness of God to be fulfilled in your life.

I want you to understand his goodness. He says over in Psalm 37, you know these words, Psalm 37, verse number three, trust in the Lord and do good, dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.

Delight yourself in the Lord. He will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord. Trust also in him and he will do it. In other words, you commit yourself to the Lord. He will give you the desires of your heart because if you're committed to Christ, you only want what Christ wants. And when you want what Christ wants, you want what's good. And God gives you his goodness so that there is no want in your life. This is Paul's prayer. This is what he desires for his people. This is so exciting to realize that Paul understands that only a good God can bestow goodness on his people, but he wants God to fulfill every desire of their goodness.

And when you desire what God wants, you desire only good things. Listen to what the Bible says in Psalm 84, verse number 11.

He says, the Lord God is a sun and a shield and no good thing does the Lord withhold from those who walk uprightly. No good thing. If you're married tonight, guess what? He who finds a wife finds what? What? Are you sure? I don't think you're sure about that. He who finds a wife finds a good thing. Well, why is it a good thing? Why is she a good thing? Because she comes from a good God. And Christ made it very clear in Matthew chapter 19, what God has joined together. In other words, God sovereignly joins you together.

You don't just pick someone out of a crowd and say, OK, I'm going to marry that one without God in the sovereignty joining you together. What God has joined together, let no man separate, meaning that God was instrumental in bringing your wife into your life because he who finds a wife finds a good thing. And God gives people good things. And so he wants these Thessalonians to understand that when God is going to come, and he is, until that time, walk worthy of your calling, live a life that's equal to your position in Christ, and that God will fulfill every desire of goodness, that God's pleasure would be seen in your life, that your pleasure would be His pleasure, and it would be fulfilled.

The Bible says in Jeremiah 31 and verse number 14, My people shall be satisfied with my goodness. My people, they will be satisfied with my goodness. In other words, my people aren't looking to be satisfied with something else other than my goodness. They want my goodness because they're my people. And I'm a good God. And if I'm a good God and I called you into my kingdom, then you want what my kingdom is characterized by. It's characterized by a God who is good. And my people will only be satisfied with my goodness.

What a beautiful prayer. So when you go to prayer, you ask God for your wife, for your husband, for your children, for your parents, for your aunts and uncles and friends and neighbors. You ask that, Lord, they would walk worthy of their calling. I pray always for this, that their lives would be equal to the calling of God upon their lives. And number two, that God's pleasure would be fulfilled in their lives.

God's plan is that you live His life. God's plan is that you live His way, that you obey His Word and you walk worthy. God's pleasure is the goodness of God satisfied in the heart of a man. And then he prays this for God's power. He says, and the work of faith with power. In the first epistle, 1 Thessalonians chapter 1, he talks to them about their work of faith.

In other words, they served God because of their faith. But now he is praying that the work of their faith be evidenced by all the power of God. They don't operate in the flesh, but they operate by the spiritual power infused in them because the Spirit of God resides within them. We want you, as the people of Christ Community Church, to have a work of faith that's filled and motivated by power. Now, you don't operate in the flesh. You don't teach in the flesh. You don't serve in the flesh. You don't do what you do and exercise your giftedness in the church in the flesh.

You do it under the power of the Spirit of God. And that's what you pray for the people of the church. You pray for God's plan and God's pleasure, God's power. And then you pray for God's purpose. What's the purpose? He says, so that the name of the Lord Jesus will be glorified in you and you in Him. That's the ultimate purpose. Why do I pray this way? Why do I want you to walk worthy? Why do I want you to understand God's pleasure? Why do I want you to operate under the power of His Spirit? Why?

Why all that? Why? Because the ultimate purpose is that you give glory to the name of the Lord. The name of the Lord. What is the name of the Lord? The name of the Lord is the name of the Lord. That's who He is. Name represents character, right? So you're talking about the character qualities of God. It is His name. There is no other name under heaven given to men whereby you must be saved. What's the name? The name is the Lord Jesus Christ. That's the name. It characterizes who He is. He's called the God of the name.

In fact, way back in Genesis 4, verse number 26, it says, man called on the name of the Lord. In Exodus 33, verse number 19, it says, His goodness is His name. Over in Proverbs 18, verse number 10, the name of the Lord is a strong tower and the righteous run to it and are safe. The Bible says in the book of Deuteronomy, the fifth chapter of the 11th verse, it says that you can't take the name of the Lord in vain.

In other words, you don't take His name in vain. You don't treat the Lord as worthless. You don't take His character and make it so that it doesn't mean anything. It means something because it means everything that God is. It's His character. That's who He is. And Paul says, I want the name of our Lord Jesus to be glorified in you. Remember way back in the book of Daniel, the ninth chapter, Daniel says this, O Lord, hear. O Lord, forgive. O Lord, listen and take action for Your own sake. O my God, do not delay because Your city and Your people are called by Your name.

They're called by Your name. Remember what Nathan told David? Nathan told David after his sin with Bathsheba, after the murder of Uriah, that David had caused all the enemies to blaspheme the name of his God. Because of his sin with Bathsheba, because of the murder of Uriah, the sword would never depart from his house. The child would die. But worse than all that is that he had brought reproach upon the name of the living God. God condemns Israel in the book of Ezekiel. He says this, because the house of Israel, living in their own land, defiled it by their ways and their deeds, I scattered them among the nations, and they were dispersed throughout the lands according to their ways and their deeds.

I judged them when they came to the nations where they went. They profaned my holy name because it was said of them, these are the people of the Lord, yet they have come out of his land. Israel lived immoral lives. Israel lived ungodly pagan lives. They lived lives that caused the Gentiles to blaspheme the name of the living God. It says over in 2 Corinthians 3, verse number 3, you are our letter written in our hearts, known and read by all men, being manifested that you are a letter of Christ cared for by us, written not with ink, but with the spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone, but on tablets of human hearts.

Paul says, you now are a living epistle. As a believer, a saint, one called by God, now become a living epistle to everybody who's an unbeliever, and as they watch your life, as they read your life, they can either despise the name of the God, blaspheme the name of our God, or learn to honor the name of our God. So important. So Paul says, look, this is what I want for you. I want God's name to be honored in your life. I want you to realize that God has one purpose for you, that His name be put on display in such a way that when the world sees it, they see Him.

And then he says this, he says, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ. This is God's provision. What's God's provision? His grace. How do we live each and every day? How are we saved? By grace through faith. How do we serve God? Verse number one, we serve because of the grace of God.

How are we sanctified? We're set apart by the grace of God. Everything in Christianity is done by God's wonderful grace. He says, this is God's provision for you. And so I want more than anything, everything to be done according to the grace of our God and Lord Jesus Christ. Now, why is this so important? Turn back to Luke chapter 18 with me, if you would. Luke chapter 18, in verse number one, the Bible says this, now He was telling them a parable to show that at all times, they ought to pray and not to lose heart.

Now, why is that important? Because Luke 17, it concludes about the second coming of the Messiah. He has this discussion with the Pharisees about the kingdom of God. He tells them that the kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed, nor would they say, look, here it is, or there it is. For behold, the kingdom of God is in your midst. He was the king. He brought the kingdom. Therefore, the kingdom of God is in your midst. So when the king comes, people are going to say, look, there he is.

Oh, it's over there. No, because the kingdom of God is in your midst. When he came the first time, he came to present the kingdom.

That's why when John the Baptist preached as the forerunner, when Christ preached, what did he preach? Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. The kingdom of God is at hand. Christ says, the kingdom is right in front of you.

But you missed it. Why? Because you wouldn't recognize me as your king. So he goes in this long dissertation about the second coming of the Messiah.

And right in the middle of it, he stops and says, you know what? But first of all, the Messiah is going to suffer and die.

And then he goes in to talk about the return of the king at the end of the tribulation. When he arrives and what he's going to do. And then it says, chapter 18, verse number one.

Now, he was telling them a parable. When was he telling them a parable? Right after he said these words, they said to him, where, Lord? Where was this going to happen? Where are all these things going to take place? And the Lord says, where the body is, there also will the vultures be gathered. Why is that? Because there's not going to be anything left but death. Everybody's going to die, except for God's called out people. If you read the book of Revelation, the 19th chapter, they call the birds to come and eat the flesh of all the kings and all the flesh of all the princes and every great man and every person that's ever existed because there's so much to feast on for the birds.

Where the vultures are, when you see all the vultures gather, that's where it's going to be. Nothing but bloodshed when I come again. Then he says, now he was telling them a parable, men are always to pray and not to faint. In other words, if you pray, you will not faint. If you faint, it's because you're not praying. Now, you might be saying a prayer, but not praying. Big difference, right? We can say a prayer. That's not praying. Praying is praying God's will. Praying is praying in conjunction with what God has said in His Word.

That's real communion with God. That's why the Bible talks about in verse number nine, he also told this parable to some people who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and viewed others with contempt. Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee, the other a tax collector. One said a prayer, the other prayed. The Pharisee said a prayer, but the tax collector, he truly prayed. So, he begins this whole thing by giving these two parables about persistency, about patience and prayer, because this is what's going to characterize the end times.

Look at this. He says, in a certain city, there was a judge who did not fear God and did not respect man. There was a widow in the city, and she kept coming to him saying, give me legal protection from my opponent. For a while, he was unwilling. But afterward, he said to himself, even though I do not fear God and respect man, yet because this widow bothers me, I will give her legal protection. Otherwise, by continually coming, she will wear me out. God uses an earthly judge in contrast to him as a heavenly judge.

Because you can go to him and wear him out. Not going to wear out the king of kings and the lord of lords. He wants you to come to him. He says this, and the Lord said, hear what the unrighteous judge said. Now, will not God bring about justice for all his elect who cry to him day and night? And will he delay long over them? I tell you that he will bring about justice for them quickly or speedily. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth? Will he find this kind of faith on the earth?

What kind of faith is that? The faith that patiently and persistently pleads for the righteous judgment of God to come speedily. That's why it's so important in 2 Thessalonians chapter 1. Paul is saying he's going to come. He's going to bring you relief. He's going to bring retribution on all those who do not know God and don't obey the gospel of God. But in the meantime, guess what? I'm praying. Why? Because I am going to pray for you. I'm going to ask God to do great things in you. Because you know, until he comes, what kind of faith will he find on the earth?

Will he find that with us? Will we be the kind of people that constantly cry out to God? See, the widow, she would not accept an unjust situation until the judge acted on her behalf. We as believers never accept an unjust situation because we are asking the righteous judge to come and make everything perfect. Because we pray for his kingdom to come to earth, his will to be done on earth as it is. In heaven. And then he launches into this huge discussion about the day of the Lord. He launches into this discussion about the rise of the lawless one, the rise of the Antichrist.

He launches into this discussion about what's going to happen in the world when this lawless one rises to power to correct everything they might have thought about the coming day of the Lord. He's going to set it all straight for them. And next week, that's what we're going to do for you. Put it right in your minds. Let's pray. Father, thank You for today, a chance that we have to look into the Word of God. For truly, Lord, we ought to be men and women of prayer, asking You to do great and mighty things in our family, in our church.

With our friends. Lord, may we be found faithful, patiently and persisting in prayer, knowing that, Lord, You are coming. And those who do not know You will face Your judgment. Those who do will find relief. So, we're asking God for You to do a great and mighty work. May our prayers echo heaven. May our prayers be righteous as You are righteous. Because we want Your righteousness fulfilled in Your people. We thank You, Lord, in Jesus' name. Amen.