I have felt for quite awhile that we have allowed our misguided presumptions about God determine where we end up on most any topic. With regard to healing prayer, most presume that God actively grants some healing prayers while specifically denying or passively ignoring others. In other words, He refuses some (most perhaps) to be healed while granting healing to certain others. The apparent arbitrariness opens up many unflattering assertions as to His goodness.
I am unwilling to make that presumption based upon the New Testament statements made below. And while I don't propose a comprehensive or dogmatic answer, I do propose an alternate paradigm shift about prayer. Anyway, I hope we continue to allow each other some elbow room to explore these vital possibilities. The whole earth is groaning for the manifestation of the sons of God to awaken and engage in what the rabbis called "tikkun ha olam," the repair of the world.
WHAT IF there is a spiritual ecosystem of prayer, an organic network where God has already pre-known and pre-answered our every prayer of faith in the affirmative (as the New Testament seems to unrelentingly promise).
And, what if there is only ONE requirement for this ecosystem to release answered prayers of healing and blessing? Its inhabitants MUST "rely upon" and "be led by" the Spirt both "in" and "through" and "past" their prayers of faith. In other words, our praying must operate in what the Bible alternatively calls "the Spirit of faith" by which we both "believe and speak" our prayers (2 Corinthians 4:13), AND "the hearing of faith" which "works miracles among us "(Galatians 3:5). In other words, organic manifestation FROM healing prayers depends on organic participation and interaction with God's Spirit IN healing prayers.
If Jesus is our model (as opposed to a unattainable mirage in whose steps His church-bride can never hope to functionally walk), then we must look to His incarnation for the dynamic of successful prayer.
Did Jesus ever fail with a healing prayer? Not that we see, except perhaps in Mark 6:5-6 upon His return to Nazareth, where it states, "He could do no mighty works, save He laid His hands on a few sick folk, and healed them" (verse 5). And Jesus thereafter, "marveled because of their unbelief" (verse 6).
Their unbelief killed an organic opportunity for God's mighty works to be done then and there. But does this mean Abba explicitly said "NO" to Jesus prayer's for a "mighty works" demonstration? Or, rather, does it mean that Jesus was organically lead in WHAT to pray for Nazareth before, during and after His ministry there, of course taking into account all the factors present, including their individual and corporate levels of receptivity? I believe the latter option is correct.
In other words, Jesus "could do no mighty works" NOT because He tried and failed, but because the Spirit led and instructed Him on what their corporate and individual capacities and willingness to receive were at THAT juncture in time. Jesus always engaged in organic prayer, and made the repeated claim that He ONLY and ALWAYS did what He first SAW the Father's Spirit do, and SPOKE only what He first HEARD the Father's Spirit speak. John 5:19, 30. We too are called, both individually and corporately, into this "mutual participation" and joint-operation with the Spirit. Philippians 2:1. "The sons and daughters of God are those who are led (and led, and led, and led) by the Spirit of God." Romans 8:14.
Because Jesus was only and always Spirit-led, He batted a thousand with His prayers. His organic "hearing of faith" meant His prayers were malleable and always fluidly formed from first "listening to" and "participating with" the Holy Spirit's assessment and desire for every situation He encountered. Some of this "hearing of faith" came from devotional prayer, some from spontaneous on-the-go interaction, and some in the wake of a particular event's occurrence after the freewill response of others had been exercised.
But, I see no situation where Abba said "NO" to any of Jesus' prayers of faith. Jesus' prayer for the removal of the cup of suffering at Gethsemane doesn't apply here as He prefaced it, "If it's possible," which, when combined with Jesus' immediate willingness thereafter to embrace the Father's will, merely demonstrates Jesus' organic "hearing of faith" prayer, which here meant aligning His will into His Father's perfection.
SO...
--IF we have Jesus' same effectual Spirit of faith (Rom. 8:9-11; Gal. 2:20; 1 Cor. 12)
--IF we have been promised that healing prayer works (James 5:16; Mark 16:18)
--IF we affirm that all the promises of God are yes and amen (2 Cor. 1:20)
--IF we ask for anything in prayer, believing, we receive (Matt. 21:22; Mk.11:22-26)
--IF we have spiritual dominion over all creation (Gen. 1:26-28; Heb. 2:6-8)
--IF we have NOT because we ask NOT, OR we ask AMISS (James 4:3)
--IF we are equipped to do the same and greater works Jesus did (Jn. 14:12-14)
... then we are left with a startling conclusion. There is no such thing as unanswered prayer. There is only un-catalyzed prayer. There is only ineffectual prayer. There are only divine promises which have not yet been properly probated by organic participation with His Spirit. But, there is no promise for blessing and healing which has NOT already been kept by the Father. His eternal YES has not yet been catalyzed by the brides endorsed AMEN which can only come from organic interaction with His.
So, instead of figuring out why God appears to say "NO" to the vast majority of prayers, let's focus on the more profitable issue as how we can better catalyze and align ourselves with His eternal "YES." The better question is how we, as the church-bride, can individually and corporately catalyze His faithful "YES" with our effectual "AMEN."
The bottom line is that we are called in our prayer life to be relational, malleable, fluid, fervent and effectual. "The fervent prayers of a righteous man avail much." James 5:16. Conversely, the UN-fervent prayers from an unbelieving posture avail little. Again, the question is not why said God "NO" to a prayer, but, rather, how can we BETTER appropriate His "YES," what William Law called "God's unchangeable and immutable will-to-all-goodness." Our prayers must not only be Spirit-given but also Spirit-driven. One major reason for ineffective prayer comes from not praying organically with, from, and through the Holy Spirit. It is a bit of a lost art.
Solution:
1) Every part of the body of christ (chruch) must do only what he sees the Father doing. John 5:19
2) Abide under atmosphere of Grace.
3) God's voice gives you the right of possession and God's vision gives you the authority to accomplish it. So let your spiritual senses be open always.
.
I am unwilling to make that presumption based upon the New Testament statements made below. And while I don't propose a comprehensive or dogmatic answer, I do propose an alternate paradigm shift about prayer. Anyway, I hope we continue to allow each other some elbow room to explore these vital possibilities. The whole earth is groaning for the manifestation of the sons of God to awaken and engage in what the rabbis called "tikkun ha olam," the repair of the world.
WHAT IF there is a spiritual ecosystem of prayer, an organic network where God has already pre-known and pre-answered our every prayer of faith in the affirmative (as the New Testament seems to unrelentingly promise).
And, what if there is only ONE requirement for this ecosystem to release answered prayers of healing and blessing? Its inhabitants MUST "rely upon" and "be led by" the Spirt both "in" and "through" and "past" their prayers of faith. In other words, our praying must operate in what the Bible alternatively calls "the Spirit of faith" by which we both "believe and speak" our prayers (2 Corinthians 4:13), AND "the hearing of faith" which "works miracles among us "(Galatians 3:5). In other words, organic manifestation FROM healing prayers depends on organic participation and interaction with God's Spirit IN healing prayers.
If Jesus is our model (as opposed to a unattainable mirage in whose steps His church-bride can never hope to functionally walk), then we must look to His incarnation for the dynamic of successful prayer.
Did Jesus ever fail with a healing prayer? Not that we see, except perhaps in Mark 6:5-6 upon His return to Nazareth, where it states, "He could do no mighty works, save He laid His hands on a few sick folk, and healed them" (verse 5). And Jesus thereafter, "marveled because of their unbelief" (verse 6).
Their unbelief killed an organic opportunity for God's mighty works to be done then and there. But does this mean Abba explicitly said "NO" to Jesus prayer's for a "mighty works" demonstration? Or, rather, does it mean that Jesus was organically lead in WHAT to pray for Nazareth before, during and after His ministry there, of course taking into account all the factors present, including their individual and corporate levels of receptivity? I believe the latter option is correct.
In other words, Jesus "could do no mighty works" NOT because He tried and failed, but because the Spirit led and instructed Him on what their corporate and individual capacities and willingness to receive were at THAT juncture in time. Jesus always engaged in organic prayer, and made the repeated claim that He ONLY and ALWAYS did what He first SAW the Father's Spirit do, and SPOKE only what He first HEARD the Father's Spirit speak. John 5:19, 30. We too are called, both individually and corporately, into this "mutual participation" and joint-operation with the Spirit. Philippians 2:1. "The sons and daughters of God are those who are led (and led, and led, and led) by the Spirit of God." Romans 8:14.
Because Jesus was only and always Spirit-led, He batted a thousand with His prayers. His organic "hearing of faith" meant His prayers were malleable and always fluidly formed from first "listening to" and "participating with" the Holy Spirit's assessment and desire for every situation He encountered. Some of this "hearing of faith" came from devotional prayer, some from spontaneous on-the-go interaction, and some in the wake of a particular event's occurrence after the freewill response of others had been exercised.
But, I see no situation where Abba said "NO" to any of Jesus' prayers of faith. Jesus' prayer for the removal of the cup of suffering at Gethsemane doesn't apply here as He prefaced it, "If it's possible," which, when combined with Jesus' immediate willingness thereafter to embrace the Father's will, merely demonstrates Jesus' organic "hearing of faith" prayer, which here meant aligning His will into His Father's perfection.
SO...
--IF we have Jesus' same effectual Spirit of faith (Rom. 8:9-11; Gal. 2:20; 1 Cor. 12)
--IF we have been promised that healing prayer works (James 5:16; Mark 16:18)
--IF we affirm that all the promises of God are yes and amen (2 Cor. 1:20)
--IF we ask for anything in prayer, believing, we receive (Matt. 21:22; Mk.11:22-26)
--IF we have spiritual dominion over all creation (Gen. 1:26-28; Heb. 2:6-8)
--IF we have NOT because we ask NOT, OR we ask AMISS (James 4:3)
--IF we are equipped to do the same and greater works Jesus did (Jn. 14:12-14)
... then we are left with a startling conclusion. There is no such thing as unanswered prayer. There is only un-catalyzed prayer. There is only ineffectual prayer. There are only divine promises which have not yet been properly probated by organic participation with His Spirit. But, there is no promise for blessing and healing which has NOT already been kept by the Father. His eternal YES has not yet been catalyzed by the brides endorsed AMEN which can only come from organic interaction with His.
So, instead of figuring out why God appears to say "NO" to the vast majority of prayers, let's focus on the more profitable issue as how we can better catalyze and align ourselves with His eternal "YES." The better question is how we, as the church-bride, can individually and corporately catalyze His faithful "YES" with our effectual "AMEN."
The bottom line is that we are called in our prayer life to be relational, malleable, fluid, fervent and effectual. "The fervent prayers of a righteous man avail much." James 5:16. Conversely, the UN-fervent prayers from an unbelieving posture avail little. Again, the question is not why said God "NO" to a prayer, but, rather, how can we BETTER appropriate His "YES," what William Law called "God's unchangeable and immutable will-to-all-goodness." Our prayers must not only be Spirit-given but also Spirit-driven. One major reason for ineffective prayer comes from not praying organically with, from, and through the Holy Spirit. It is a bit of a lost art.
Solution:
1) Every part of the body of christ (chruch) must do only what he sees the Father doing. John 5:19
2) Abide under atmosphere of Grace.
3) God's voice gives you the right of possession and God's vision gives you the authority to accomplish it. So let your spiritual senses be open always.
.
