August 9, 2025 SERMON

 Pastor T's Sermon at the District Prayer Summit on August 9, 2025, held at Maranatha Church of God of Prophecy.

"… The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much."

James 5:16b, 

James chapter 5, and we begin in the second part of verse 16—…The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. 

It’s my prayer that we will never underestimate the importance of prayer.

Andrew Murray said, “In relation to His people, God works only in answer to their prayers.” “Only in answer to their prayers.” Then, he said, “It is in prayer that we Exchange our natural strength for the supernatural strength of God.” 

Dr. R. A. Torrey said, “Nothing lies beyond the reach of prayer except that which lies beyond the will of God.” 

Dr. A. C. Dickson, said, “When we depend upon organization, we get what organization can do—and that, is something.  When we depend upon education, we get what education can do—and that, is something.  When we depend upon money, we get what money can do—and that, is something.  

When we depend upon singing and preaching, we get what singing and preaching can do—and that, is something. 

But then, he said, “When we depend upon prayer, we get what God can do.” And oh, what this world needs is what God can do. What our city needs is what God can do. What your home needs is what God can do. What our church needs is what God can do. 

Listen, you don’t have failure in your life but somehow, it’s a prayer failure. You don’t have a need in your life but what earnest persistent believing prayer could supply that need in your life. 

There’s not a sin in your life but what prayer—the right kind of prayer; prayer in the Savior’s name; effectual, fervent prayer—would have prevented that sin.

Oh, the power of prevailing prayer. The power of effectual fervent prayer.

A little girl heard the choir singing, “God is Still on the Throne.” She didn’t understand it quite correctly and told someone they were singing, “God is Still on the Phone.” Well, He is, praise God. 

There’s a heavenly hotline and thank God—God is still on the phone. He answers our prayers. 

Prayer is the greatest Christian privilege; you and I can talk with God? I mean, think about it—the one who scooped out the seas, and heaped up the mountains, and flung out the stars. The omnipotent God has invited us to talk with him.

It’s the greatest Christian privilege; it’s the greatest Christian power. More things are wrought by prayer than this world dreams of. 

And oh, it is the greatest Christian failure. We have not because we ask not. May God forgive us. I recently read where the average person in America prays about two minutes a day; TWO MINUTES.

Prayer is not just getting ready for Christian service—prayer is Christian service. We’re serving God when we pray.

I serve God more when I pray than when I preach. We serve God more when we pray than when we win souls. One is not meant to be a substitute for the other. Listen, you can do more than pray after you pray, but you can do no more than pray until you pray. 

Sometimes we give without sacrifice, we pray without fasting, we witness without tears. Is it any wonder that we sow without results? James says, “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” 

How God has convicted my heart again as I’ve studied for this message. And, how I’ve had to bow my head, and confess my sin, and say, “O God, forgive my cold, lukewarm, indifferent prayers! 

O God, may I learn how to pray effectually. May I learn how to pray fervently! May I pray as James taught us to pray: ‘the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” 

These words suggest that there is more to prayer than simply speaking words.

Effectual prayer is effective, powerful, and produces results. Fervent prayer is passionate, intense, and sincere.

It is the kind of prayer that moves beyond mere formality and enters the realm of deep spiritual communion with God.

To pray fervently is to engage with God on a heart level. It is to pour out our souls before Him, as Hannah did when she prayed for a son (1 Samuel 1:10-15). It is to wrestle in prayer, as Jacob did when he sought God's blessing (Genesis 32:24-30).

Fervent prayer is not concerned with eloquence or length but with the earnestness of the heart that seeks God's face and desires His will above all else.

Prayer of this kind requires persistence. Jesus illustrated this in the parable of the persistent widow in Luke 18:1-8. The widow’s relentless pursuit of justice eventually moved the unjust judge to act on her behalf.

Jesus concluded the parable by asking, "And will not God bring about justice for His chosen ones, who cry out to Him day and night? Will He keep putting them off?"

The lesson here is clear: fervent, persistent prayer is heard by God, and He responds to the cries of His people.

When James declares that the prayer of a righteous person "availeth much," he is asserting that such prayer is not only powerful but also effective.

It has the ability to change circumstances, alter outcomes, and bring about God's will on earth. Throughout the Bible, we find prayers of righteous individuals which led to miraculous interventions from God.

Consider the prophet Elijah, whom James references in the verses following our key text (James 5:17-18).

Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, yet his prayers stopped the rain for three and a half years, and his prayers brought it back.

His prayers were powerful because he was aligned with God’s purposes. He prayed according to God’s will, and God responded mightily.

The prayer of the righteous is powerful because it is rooted in faith.

When we pray in faith, we are not merely hoping for an answer; we are standing on the promises of God, believing that He is able and willing to intervene.

Therefore, when a righteous person prays with faith, mountains of adversity, sickness, and oppression can be moved.

Moreover, the prayer of the righteous avails much because it is aligned with the will of God.

Jesus, our ultimate example, prayed fervently in the Garden of Gethsemane, yet He submitted His desires to the Father’s will, saying, "Not my will, but thine, be done" (Luke 22:42).

Righteous prayer is not about bending God's will to ours but about aligning our will with His.

When we pray in this manner, we can be confident that our prayers will avail much because they are in harmony with God's perfect plan.

In our world today, where there is so much uncertainty, injustice, and suffering, the need for the prayers of the righteous has never been greater.

We are called to stand in the gap, to intercede on behalf of others, and to seek God's intervention in the affairs of our lives, our communities, and our nations.

The prayer of the righteous can bring healing where there is sickness, peace where there is turmoil, and justice where there is oppression.

We must also recognize that prayer is not a passive activity; it is a catalyst for change.

When we pray, we invite God's power and presence into our circumstances. We open the door for Him to work in ways that are beyond our comprehension.

Paul reminds us in Ephesians 3:20, God "is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us."

Therefore, let us not underestimate the power of our prayers as righteous believers.

Through the combination of prayer and faith we can see mountains of difficulties and obstacles moved. Through prayer and faith our relationship with Jesus Christ is built day-by-day and prayer by prayer into a relationship of trust and love that will last for eternity. 

Through prayer we can change the course of history, see God move in the hearts and minds of men and women and through prayer we can know the will of God and even have a profound impact upon what God does in our own lives. 

There is much truth to that simple statement that says, “Prayer changes Things’.

One Sunday evening at church the congregation tried to concentrate on the sermon coming from the pulpit as the father of a very noisy little boy was carried out of the church toward an evitable lesson on behavior.

Everyone tried to ignore the whole scene, but a prayer request came forth that simply could not be ignored. As they reached the doorway to the outside, the little boy looked quickly around and with one last great fervent prayer request he said, "Ya’ll please pray for me right now!"

If we could learn to pray with the fervency and urgency of the prayer that this little boy needed right then, there’s no limit to what could be accomplished through the Lord’s help.

The life of a community of believers is to revolve around prayer. 

Isaiah 56:7 God said to His people, “My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations.” 

Jesus quoted that verse when He cleansed the temple. He confronted the spiritual leaders for making God’s house “a den of thieves” -- something other than a house of prayer. 

Today we are in danger of making God’s house into a house of entertainment. If we call it church; but no one prays—something is wrong. Is it 

really a gathering of the church?

The early church was a house of prayer; it was birthed in prayer. It operated in the power of prayer. When the government was opposing them, they didn’t sign petitions—they prayed. 

Acts tells us that when they prayed the place was shaken; they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word with boldness.

Hear this and hear it well: The Devil does not want you praying. He does not want God’s house to be a house of prayer. And he will do everything he can to keep it from becoming a house of prayer—even if it means letting it be a successful house of entertainment!

James states this fact emphatically. Verse 16, “The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” Prayer matters: prayer matters a lot.

I looked up effectual prayer, it means: "it moves the hand of Him who moves the world." Then I looked up “fervent,” it means “stretched out," "zeal," "fervor" “intent”, “earnest.”

Church, I want my prayers to avail much. 

Have you ever thought your prayers were a waste of time? Where do those thoughts come from? Think about it; that is exactly the opposite of what the Bible says. James tells us prayer “avails much.” It makes a whole lot of difference.

But then someone might say, “Yes it avails much for a righteous man; but what about me?” Let’s consider the Bible’s revelation of a righteous person.

Isiah 64:6 tells us that “all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags....” So, it can’t be referring to self-righteousness. The Pharisees were very righteous in their own eyes. But their works did not qualify them as righteous in God’s eyes.

In Romans 4 Paul taught that we become righteous by trusting in Jesus as our Lord and Savior. He concludes that whole discussion in Romans 5:1 

“Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” 

To be justified means to be made right with God or made righteous in Christ. So, we understand that James is talking about the prayers of Christians.

Being transformed by the grace of God we bear fruit of righteousness. The righteousness God gave you in Christ is not just a theoretical righteousness. It is real and it causes us to behave right as the general course of our lives. 

That’s why John writes, “Little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous” (1 John 3:7) and verse 9 “Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.” 

That verse does not mean a Christian never sins. We’ve all lived long enough to know that sincere Christians do fail at times. That verse is talking about sin as a way of life. 

The true child of God cannot habitually live in sin. David wrote in Ps 66:18 “If I regard iniquity in my heart, The Lord will not hear.” In other words, “If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened.” 

Then he goes on to say, “But God has surely listened and heard my voice in prayer. 20 Praise be to God, who has not rejected my prayer or withheld His love from me!” (Ps 66:18-20).

I want to suggest that a righteous person is someone who has been cleansed by the blood of Jesus—someone who has been born again filled with the Holy Spirit—and is someone who is sincerely, although imperfectly, trying to follow the Lord. 

So, when the Devil tells you that you’re not righteous, don’t point out the good deeds you have done. Point him to the soul-saving blood of Jesus. Don’t allow the Devil to talk you out of the comfort and assurance of our text. “The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.”

Three and a half years Elijah had prayed that the rain would stop. Then in cooperation with God’s plan, he prays that the rain would come. 1 Kings 18:41-46 You know the story.

Can you see God’s faith working in Elijah as he believes for the rain? The answer to prayer did not come like magic. Elijah interceded for the rain to come. He prayed and there seemed to be no result. He prayed some more but still the servant saw nothing to indicate the prayer was being answered. He continued to pray. 

Elijah prayed until he “prayed through” as us old timers called it. What does it mean to pray through? It means you keep praying until God gives a strong inner assurance that you have your request. 

You may or may not see the external evidence of an answer; but you know that you know in your heart that God has heard your prayer and the answer is coming.

On the seventh trip all the servant saw was a cloud as small as a man’s hand out in the distance. I’m sure he was reporting what it looked like to him—not enough to flood the land with rain. 

But Elijah said, “That’s good enough for me.   The thunderstorm is coming; Ahab, you had better get where you’re going because it’s going to be a gully-washer.” 

It wasn’t long until the sky was black with clouds full of water. The Spirit of the Lord came upon Elijah and he outran Ahab’s horses for about 10 miles. Glory!

Prayer is all about partnering with God in the execution of His will on the earth. God could execute His will without us. He has simply chosen not to do that. He has chosen to let us participate in what He’s doing.

Prayer is about living in relationship with God. A conversation with God. I suspect that the main reason God involves us in executing His will on earth is because He wants a relationship with us. He wants to share His joy, His kingdom with us.

What James wants his audience to understand is “The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” 

I want something for our churches that cannot be explained except that God has done it.  

I want something that cannot be written off by someone’s personality, someone’s propaganda, someone’s program.

I want something that will have the unmistakable stamp of God upon it, and this is none other than the work of God. I want the stamp of God on it. 

And that comes through prayer. 

I want our fellowship—not frozen together by formalism, not wired together by organization, not rusted together by tradition. I want us melted together by prayer—where we pray one for another. 

I want our homes blessed by prayer. I want our estranged children brought back by prayer. I want our weak will made strong by prayer. I want our needs met by prayer. 

I want us to have victory over the world, the flesh, the devil by prayer. And James says that we have not because we ask not (James 4:3). 

Our friends need our prayers. Pray one for another. I need your prayers. You need my prayers. Oh, God grant that we might pray with fervency, and frequency, and fruitfulness! “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” 

In Jesus’ Name Amen!