The Powerful Prayer of a Cleansed Heart

“One day, I had the strong impression that Satan was in the room,” a friend said. “The scripture came to me that Jesus said of himself, ‘The ruler of this world is coming, and he has nothing in Me’ (John 14:30).” The Amplified Bible explains this verse by adding, “there is nothing in Me that belongs to him, he has no power over Me.”

Satan could find no attitude in Jesus that was unlike a holy God. How important it is for us to possess a holy heart when we want God to answer our prayers! The author of The Kneeling Christian said, “Believing prayer from a totally cleansed heart never fails.”

When we are being continually filled with the Holy Spirit, Satan finds the same attitude in us that He found in Christ. There is nothing in us that the evil one can claim as his. Instead, we have the attitude Jesus mentioned when He said, “I seek not to please myself but him who sent me” (John 5:30). 

Seeking to please God is an indication of a holy heart. If our lives are characterized by living to please God rather than self:

—we grieve when we realize we have displeased Him.

—we don’t get offended. Getting offended is often a sign of a proud heart.

—we can be happy when others are honored, even if it is at our expense.

—we learn to wait on God rather than trying to force things to go our way.

Thank You, dear Lord, for giving me a desire for You to search my heart. I want no sinful attitude to hinder my prayers.

“He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the Lord will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness” (Malachi 3:3).