Billy Graham (right) praying with Dr. E.V. Hill, pastor of Mount Zion Missionary Baptist Church
Daniel Whyte III
TEXT: Luke 6:12
And it came to pass in those days, that [Jesus] went out into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God.
We are in a series of messages titled “Praying Through the Bible: A Series on Every Passage and Verse Regarding Prayer in the Bible.” The purpose of this series is to encourage and motivate you to pray to the God of the Bible. We highlighted each of these over 500 verses and passages in the Prayer Motivator Devotional Bible. So far, we have completed 286 messages in this series.
This is message #287 titled, Prayer: The Power Behind the Life and Preaching of Billy Graham, Part 3.
Today, I will continue sharing with you from Billy Graham’s message, “Power When You Pray.”
In this modern age, we’ve learned to harness the power of the atom, but very few of us have learned how to fully develop the power of prayer. We have not yet learned that a man is more powerful on his knees than behind the most powerful weapons we have ever developed. We have not learned that a nation is more powerful when it unites in earnest prayer to God than when its resources are channeled into defensive weapons. We have not discovered that the answer to our problems can be through contact with God.
Jesus Christ died to make communion and communication with the Father possible. He told us of the joy in heaven when one sinner turns from sin to God and from his heart breathes a simple prayer — “God, be merciful to me a sinner.” But Jesus set the example of prayer for us. Not a day began or closed in which he did not unfold his soul before his Father. It is recorded that He spent entire nights in fervent appeal; yet how little perseverance and persistence in pleading we show. One man in Washington spent 17 years securing favorable action on a claim of $81,000 against the government. Yet many people will not pray 17 minutes for the welfare of their own immortal souls or the salvation of other people.
The nation’s strongest secret weapon, its most powerful spiritual defense, can be prayer. Mighty leaders have not hesitated to bow down before God. It was reported that one could always point out General Washington when he went to Congress in Philadelphia because he always knelt in prayer.
As we look at the prayer life of Jesus, we notice the earnestness with which he prayed. The New Testament records that he cried out with a loud voice, that in the intensity of his supplication, He fell headlong on the damp ground in the garden. He pleaded until his sweat was as it were great drops of blood. Too often, we use petty little petitions, oratorical exercises, the words of others rather than the cries of our inmost being. Too often when we pray, our thoughts begin to roam, and we insult God by speaking to him with our lips while our heart is far from him. Suppose you were talking to the Queen of England; you would not let your thoughts wonder for one moment. You would be intensely interested in everything she said. How then dare we treat the King of Kings with disrespect and disdain.
Let us pray often. Let us pray fervently. Let us pray with attentiveness and respect. Let us pray in the power and name of Jesus Christ.
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Now, if you are with us today, and you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ as your Saviour, your first prayer needs to be what we call the Sinner’s Prayer. First, please understand that you are a sinner, just as I am, and that you have broken God’s laws. The Bible says in Romans 3:23: “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”
Second, accept the fact that there is a penalty for sin. The Bible states in Romans 6:23: “For the wages of sin is death…”
Third, accept the fact that you are on the road to hell. Jesus Christ said in Matthew 10:28: “And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” Also, the Bible states in Revelation 21:8: “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.”
Now this is bad news, but here’s the good news. Jesus Christ said in John 3:16: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
Just believe in your heart that Jesus Christ died for your sins, was buried, and rose from the dead by the power of God for you so that you can live eternally with Him. Pray and ask Him to come into your heart today, and He will.
Romans 10:9 & 13 says, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved… For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
If you believe that Jesus Christ died on the Cross for your sins, was buried, and rose from the dead, and you want to trust Him for your Salvation today, please pray with me this simple prayer: Holy Father God, I realize that I am a sinner and that I have done some bad things in my life. For Jesus Christ sake, please forgive me of my sins. I now believe with all of my heart that Jesus Christ died for me, was buried, and rose again. Lord Jesus, please come into my heart and save my soul and change my life today. Amen.
If you just trusted Jesus Christ as your Saviour, and you prayed that prayer and meant it from your heart, I declare to you that based upon the Word of God, you are now saved from Hell and you are on your way to Heaven. Welcome to the family of God! Congratulations on trusting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour. You have done the most important thing in life. For more information to help you grow in your newfound faith in Christ, go to Gospel Light Society.com and read “What To Do After You Enter Through the Door”. Jesus Christ said in John 10:9, “I am the door, by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.”
God loves you. We love you. And may God bless you.
Daniel Whyte III has spoken in meetings across the United States and in over twenty-five foreign countries. He is the author of over forty books including the Essence Magazine, Dallas Morning News, and Amazon.com national bestseller, Letters to Young Black Men. He is also the president of Gospel Light Society International, a worldwide evangelistic ministry that reaches thousands with the Gospel each week, as well as president of Torch Ministries International, a Christian literature ministry.
He is heard by thousands each week on his radio broadcasts/podcasts, which include: The Prayer Motivator Devotional, The Prayer Motivator Minute, as well as Gospel Light Minute X, the Gospel Light Minute, the Sunday Evening Evangelistic Message, the Prophet Daniel’s Report, the Second Coming Watch Update and the Soul-Winning Motivator, among others.
He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Theology from Bethany Divinity College, a Bachelor’s degree in Religion from Texas Wesleyan University, a Master’s degree in Religion, a Master of Divinity degree, and a Master of Theology degree from Liberty University’s Rawlings School of Divinity (formerly Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary). He is currently a candidate for the Doctor of Ministry degree.
He has been married to the former Meriqua Althea Dixon, of Christiana, Jamaica since 1987. God has blessed their union with seven children.
Gospel Light House of Prayer International 