October 25, 2015
Dr. Montia Setzler, Senior Pastor
Series: Game Changer
The Power of Fervent Prayer
James 5:13–18 (HCSB)
13 Is anyone among you suffering? He should pray. Is anyone cheerful? He should sing praises. 14 Is anyone among you sick? He should call for the elders of the church, and they should pray over him after anointing him with olive oil in the name of the Lord. 15 The prayer of faith will save the sick person, and the Lord will restore him to health; if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.
16 Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The urgent request of a righteous person is very powerful in its effect.
17 Elijah was a man with a nature like ours; yet he prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the land. 18 Then he prayed again, and the sky gave rain and the land produced its fruit.
1. FERVENT PRAYER STARTS BY CONNECTING WITH GOD. (vv 13-15)
• Regardless of whether things are going right or wrong, we can still go to God.
• When we ask others to pray for us, our faith is the key.
• The power is not us, but God does the miracle.
2. FERVANT PRAYER CONNECTS US WITH ONE ANOTHER. (v 16a)
• God designed our relationship lines to form a cross.
• We were made to depend on one another.
3. FERVENT PRAYER PRODUCES AMAZING RESULTS. (vv 16b-18)
• The resources of heaven are unleashed by intense, powerful prayer.
• Prayer can be uttered by anyone, but powerful prayer comes from a clean vessel.
• God can use ordinary people to bring about extraordinary results.
Psalm 109:30 (HCSB)
30 I will fervently thank the LORD with my mouth; I will praise Him in the presence of many.
From the beginning, God has given us a way to connect and communicate with Him through prayer. When our hearts are lined up with His, the results are amazing and powerful.
