The Prayer Meeting Leader’s Handbook
A manual and resource for leaders and those who desire
to be leaders of A Prayer Meeting
by
Bob Hill
Chapter Three: The Prayer Meeting as a School of
Prayer
Many of us long for a vibrant prayer life but the obtaining of it in our
own efforts is impossible. Basically, it can be realized only by
God’s help. But God uses means.
He uses other Christians. By gathering with others with the same
desire we can mutually support each other. Alcoholics Anonymous
is a support group that helps many so we can help our brothers and
sisters.
God uses his Word and the teaching of its truths. When the Word
of God is regularly allowed to say what it has to say about prayer,
especially before we pray this can become an ongoing encouraging
and maturing in our experience of prayer.
God uses two methods to educate His people: the lip and the life.
The lip in teaching and the life in example. We have both when the
leader of the meeting teaches the doctrine of prayer and then leads
others to pray.
The inexperienced are lead by the experienced.
The corporate prayer meeting is both the school and the shop for
prayer.
“The intent is to communicate our experience in being led by the
Lord, rather than to construct examples to be emulated.”
The
Praying Church, Sue Curran
“As the art of medicine or healing is founded on the knowledge of
natural principles and is made up of rules drawn from the nature of
things and from reason and observation, so the art of preaching is
learned and attained by the knowledge of diving principles and the
use of rules and directions for explaining and appying divine truths;
and so, too, the holy skill of prayer is built on a just knowle3dge of
God and ourselves, and may be taught in as rational a method by
proper directions and rules. A Guide to Prayer, Isaac Watts, p 35
As others pray with us, it often helps to clarify what God wants.
Corporate prayer helps us to more clearly discern God's will,
through the greater objectivity that comes through others (Proverbs
11:14).
See Andrew Murray's book The School of Prayer
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Chapter Four: Procedure for the Meeting
The basic principle is that the meeting should be controled by the
Holy Spirit. Once we accept this our mind is flooded with questions:
“What can keep Him from exercising His influence?” “How do we
know when the Holy Spirit is leading?” “Is there anything we can
do if the Holy Spirit is leading?”
Doing nothing to influence the service is not the answer. God
normally works through means.
How to get people to pray
1. Lead them.
By Example
By Exhortation with Scripture
2. Call on someone. This is dangerous.
Divide up into small groups. Group as women and as men.
Model praying for the people. Don’t be psuedo humble and say that
you can’t pray good enough. Really, you can’t but the Holy Spirit
through you can. Pray long and hard in secret and your Father will
reward you openly. As God to help you pray and then just do it
trusting God to bless. The Holy Spirit will take it from there.
Inspire the people to pray. This is one of the purposes of the
“starters” presenting the Word of God to the hearts of God’s
children will almost always inspire them to pray.
Pass the plate prayer request collection & distribution.
Pass a offering plate and collect a prayer request from each
person. When collected distribute them so that no one gets their
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own prayer request. The assigned prayer request can be done for
the meeting or for the week. Categorizes can be established to
guide what is prayed for. Examples, missions, unchurched familes,
people groups, special projects.
Openings for the meeting
Heb 4:16 “Therefore let us confidently approach the throne of
grace to receive mercy and find grace whenever we need help.”
Rom 8:26 “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness,
for we do not know how we should pray, but the Spirit himself
intercedes for us with inexpressible groanings. 8:27 And he who
searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit
intercedes on behalf of the saints according to God’s will.”
Closings for the meeting
Rom 11:36 “For from him and through him and to him are all
things. To him be glory forever! Amen.”
Jude 24 “ Now to the one who is able to keep you from falling, and
to cause you to stand, rejoicing, without blemish before his glorious
presence,”
Sometimes the meeting will need to be closed at a specified time.
But we should always be open to the leadership of the Holy Spirit.
The main reason that God does not lead us more frequently and
more obviously is that we are too busy running the show our
selves. God will let us have things our way but the price is his
manifest presence and power.
Maintain variety
Keeping a blend of petition, praise, intercession.
Braking into sub groups.
Time and place.
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Ways to deal with prayer request. Length of prayers.
Pray don’t preach.
Couplet praying Instead of taking request have the people pray for
each other in pairs. One prays for what is his most pressing burden
and another follows praying for that same concern.
Use Paul's prayers as outlines for our prayers. This can be done in
our personal praying (privately and publicly) and as the procedure
for corporate praying
God dwells not only where, O’er saintly dust,
The Sweet bells greet the fairest morn of seven; Wherever simple
folk love, pray and trust, Behold the House of God, the Gate of
Heaven.
Guidelines
Start on time. Not only does this save valuable time, we meet to
pray not just talk.
Usually it is good to begin with expressing thankfulness to God.
Pray for the meeting that you are in at that moment.
Ask for protection from the forces of Satan.
Ask for the manifest presence of the Spirit.
Ask for liberty in praying. Heb 4:16 “free speaking”
use simple and direct language. Just talk to God as you would talk
to a father, but also with reverence for who God is, the Lord of the
universe.
-pray as God leads, not with vain repetitions and memorized
phrases.
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Pray loud and clear enough so others can hear, understand, and
share in what is being said (1 Cor. 14:16).
no one can tell how much prayer there is in a prayer-meeting
simply by counting the prayers; there may be praise, adoration,
confession, submission, even petition, otherwise expressed, in
song, speech, even looks.
Requests
Sometimes the prayer meeting has been nicknamed “an organ
recital” because so many people request prayer for individual
physical problems like, kidney, gall bladder, stomace, head ace.
While these are very serious to anyone with the problem if they
dominate the meeting it makes for a very self centered even selfish
exercise. It implies that God is there just to relieve our pain and
make life easier for us. This needs to be balanced with “kingdom
praying.”
In taking request for prayer take only one personal request for each
kingdom request. It might help to prayer for the pair of request,
corporately, before taking another pair of request.
Silence
Don’t be nervous Everything in the 21 century life style eliminates
or challenges “Silence.” The old saying “Silence is Golden” still
has some truth. To hear God’s silent Spirit we must learn how to
create an atmosphere of silence so we can listen, hear, and
respond.
Watch for the leadership of the Spirit
Use that time to keep on praying silently.
Pray silently for the Spirit to lead the right some one to pray.
Focus--learn awareness of Him and not others.
Team effort--prayer is for every believer, not just a few super
saints.
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Every believer is a priest and has access into the very throne of
God (Heb. 4:16; 1 Pet. 2:4, 9).
Be spontaneous
Be conversational
In a well- led meeting the many take part. The led do more than the
leader.
Promptness in beginning and closing is a small thing, but it is better
to begin on time, even with no one to play the accompaniments,
and only half a dozen worshippers, than to lose ten minutes waiting
for the laggards. A meeting begun behind time carries a sense of
weakness all through. If it is the leader's fault that it is late, he must
begin with the handicap of a consciousness of having cheated
every one present of five or ten minutes, to say nothing of having
put an affront upon God that he would shrink from putting on his
employer, or upon any business man with whom he had made an
engagement. If he cares for this, he will be hampered all through by
a sense of shame and regret. If he does not care, he is too callous
to lead a meeting.
If we are not willing to study the problem of the prayer-meeting in its
relation to little things as well as great things, we show a lack of
appreciation of it, and of patience and thoroughness in dealing with
it, that does not augur well for bringing more spiritual life into it. Not
that it can be renewed in vitality by scientific methods; "not by might
nor by power, but by My Spirit, saith the Lord" (Zech. 46). But the
Spirit of God comes in response to a spirit of consecration in the
church, and we need to be willing to consecrate ourselves to
painstaking in little things as well as great.
Mal 3:16: Then they that feared the LORD spake often one to
another: and the LORD hearkened, and heard it, and a book of
remembrance was written before him for them that feared the
LORD, and that thought upon his name.
The details of the prayer-meeting should be studied carefully. That
means a good deal of plodding. Let no one get the impression that
only a genius could avoid monotony, and make a meeting
interesting. Patient attention to details is better than genius.
Geniuses are not as good leaders as common plodders. Geniuses
want to do it all themselves. Plodders draw out others. They are
willing to plod in little byways. They are willing to be helpful, where
geniuses want to shine. The thing that the leader forgot, is usually
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the thing that mars the meeting. A big idea in the rough is not worth
half so much as a small idea carefully worked out.
There are a score of other little things that may be done to freshen
a prayer-meeting room. Sometimes the whole order of things may
need to be turned, just as we turn an old garment and make it
almost as good as new, by a new pattern, a little fresh binding, and
a few new buttons. Don't be afraid of introducing the element of
surprise into the meeting. Do the unexpected and informal thing
when it seems to be thing to do. Get the church choir to come and
sing. Ask the young people to visit the church prayer-meeting in a
body. Invite the pastor and deacons to visit the young people's
meeting. Don't court novelty for the sake of novelty, but use novelty
as an inducement to worship. God wants His sheep led into "green
pastures"; are our prayer-meetings keeping them on the old, dry
stubble? There is enough individuality in almost every church to
make the prayer-meetings fresh and attractive. It isn't looked up
and enlisted. We leave all the praying and speaking to "the faithful
few," when a little more "gumption" would draw out new voices, and
a little more thoughtfulness would lead us all to lay aside our stilted,
conventional manner. (2) The way in which the meeting is opened
counts for a great deal. If it has been the unvarying custom to do
this in a set way, don't do it that way; it isn't necessary. There are
so many other ways, if one will just think a moment. Open with
silent prayer. Open with a solo. Open with sentence prayers. Open
with a blackboard talk. Open, by prearrangement, with remarks
from some one in the pews. In the young people's meeting open
with comments by six members on the six daily readings. Open
with Bible verses given by the members as testimonies. Open with
the scripture reading. It would be unpardonable to create the
impression that new ways in a meeting are a substitute for the
Divine presence which all have come to realize; new ways are
simply a means for arousing those present out of lethargy, and
helping them to expect and seek the presence of Him who alone is
the life of the meeting.
Prayer lags when we have nothing but ourselves to pray about.
Selfishness always stagnates.
Missionary prayer meeting
I would make a strong plea for monthly missionary prayer-meetings
for the whole church. The young people have theirs; the women's
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missionary societies have theirs. The men are worse neglected at
home than the heathen are abroad, except for an occasional
missionary sermon or address, unless the church prayer-meeting
sometimes deals with missions. The policy of relegating missionary
meetings to the women and children is fatal. More than anything
else missions need the men, and men need missions. But if we
have missionary prayer-meetings for the church, they must be of
the kind that make people fall in love with missions, and not of the
kind that make people fall out with missions. It is possible to have,
missionary prayer-meetings that will thrill. The fascination, the
heroism, the tremendous world-conquest of missions may be so
presented as to lift men off their seats. It is the more common
experience, however, to have missionary meetings that are
stereotyped, and dull, and dreary; these are the meetings that drive
men away, resolved never to go to another. The other kind hook
them with hooks, and fire their souls with missionary ardor. Nothing
fires the imagination, and makes men's nerves tingle like heroism.
Next to war, and love, missions are calculated to appeal to the
young mind particularly, but to all minds, for missions are the
embodiment of adventure, romance, chivalry, and the marvelous.
Missions are the firing-line of civilization's advance around the
world.
1. Pack the meeting with fresh facts.
2. Have a designated contact person for each church missionary.
To summarize, in closing, the missionary prayer-meeting that will
make people fall in love with missions, even the men of the church,
is the meeting that gives them fresh, vital truths about the inspiring,
courageous work of missionaries; it is the meeting that utilizes the
largest number of people of the congregation or young people's
society in preparing and presenting the program; it is the meeting
that presents truth to the eyes as well as the ear; it is the meeting
that is as full of definite points as a box of tacks; it is the meeting
that utilizes the sentiment it arouses in some definite, practical
missionary work-something "worthwhile." We are told that the
twentieth century man must be convinced that a thing is
"worthwhile."
Occasionally have a them for the prayer meeting. Preceding and
during the actual prayer time information and specifics can be given
in support of the theme.
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Possible themes:
>Persecuted Christians around the world.
>A specific Church or ministry.
>A specific missionary, especially one the church supports.
>A particular country.
It was in a congregational prayer meeting that a missionary
movement was launched in Antioch: "While they were worshiping
the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, ‘‘Set apart for me
Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.’’ So
after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them
and sent them off" (Acts 13:1-3).
If the group is small enough have each person give two request: 1.
Personal 2.Non Personal. An object for interceeding. When one
give his two request then the group prays for those request. Then
let the second person give his two request and then each of the
others one at a time and the group praying after each pair of
request.
Arranging the chairs in concentric circles is a good way to promote
unity and help everyone to hear what others are saying.
In coming to a prayer meeting we come to wait on the Lord, more
specifically the Holy Spirit, not on other meeting. It is a bad habit to
delay the meeting for the late-comers to drag in. This sends a bad
message to the people, “corporate prayer is something we do when
we get around to it.” It is an insult to God, a waste of time. Meeting
that start late usually are dull and end early. Waiting on those late
encourages others on being late.
“We enter His gates with thanksgiving, asking for His guidance,
edifying ourselves in the Spirit. We cannot ‘conjure up’ the flow of
the Spirit, but we can quickly make ourselves available to His
leading.” The Praying Church, Sue Curran p 80
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“Dr. W. L. Stidger, in his great prayer meetings when he was pastor
in Detroit and Kansas City, had his people unite in prayer by the
singing of some great prayer-hymns, saying, “We are going to sing
a great and beautiful prayer-hymn. It was originally written as a
prayer. It has the phraseology of prayer in every line. It has the
spiritual pulse of prayer in it. If you will sing it as a prayer it will be
such to you. ‘That will give every person in this great crowd an
opportunity to pray.” And he testifies that it creates the mood of the
Upper Room, and in many years’ experience he has never known it
to fail. He thinks it is more effective than extemporaneous prayer
from either minister or layman. The prayer-hymn might be even
more impressive if it were read in concert before singing it together,
for the thought is often brought out more clearly by reading than by
singing. The Prayer Meeting, James A. McDonald, page 12
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Chapter Five: Starters for the Prayer Meeting
(Or For personal prayer time meditation)
What is a “prayer meeting starter” ?
A “prayer meeting starter” is a short Bible study on the subject of
prayer, designed to get the pray-ers focused on the task at hand
and to give the Holy Spirit an opportunity to prepare us for prayer.
A real prayer meeting is not a Bible Study. When we try to combine them,
the meeting becomes a Bible study and prayer is minimized. The
difference between a Bible study and a prayer meeting is in its primary
purpose. The Bible study’s purpose is to communicate the truth of what
the Bible says. The prayer meeting’s purpose is to unite in real and
fervent prayer. To try to do both in one meeting is more than the human
mind and body can endure in one meeting. Prayer deserves to be
maximized and is worth a meeting exclusively for prevailing in prayer.
Robert Murray McCheyne said “A great part of my time is spent in getting
my heart in tune for prayer.” This is true for the individual in secret
prayer, but it is also true for the corporate prayer meeting. Corporate
prayer needs careful and prayerful preparation: we need to prepare our
hearts, pray for those leading the meeting, and pray for the Holy Spirit to
make it the meeting He wants it to be.
How do we have a prayer meeting that is not a Bible study but is still
nurtured by The Word of God? We suggest that the meeting be started
with the Word of God. Not just the reading of it but the explaining and
applying of it to our lives. Further, we suggest that the subject matter be
“prayer” not a miscellaneous topic or text from the Bible. We need to
hear what the Bible has to say concerning prayer, especially when we
start to pray. It is at that time that we need to prepare our hearts and get
our spirits in a praying mode.
Following are articles designed for the leader to use as “starter talks” to
begin the prayer meeting. The “starter” should be long enough to develop
a single idea and prepare the hearts for prayer, but not long enough to
detract from prayer time. It should not become an end in itself, but a
means to the end of prevailing prayer. It seems that it takes at least ten
minutes and should normally take no longer than fifteen minutes. A onehour prayer meeting with 15 minutes of receiving what the Word of God
says about prayer and 45 minutes of fervent praying is a good basic plan
to follow.
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The need for the “starter” is that the pray-er is not always and naturally in
a mental and spiritual mood to pray. These starters are designed to stir
our hearts and minds to prayer. They could be used for corporate or
personal prayer times.
We cannot anticipate specific needs and situations. Our plan is to give
enough material for a beginner to be able to communicate a complete
thought if he just reads the material with a few comments. Those leaders
with more experience may not want to use all the material given. We
suggest the "cafeteria" method---pick out what is right for the particular
occasion.
It might be desirable to give the starter notes to the pray-ers in the
meeting. They can keep them for future use in their secret prayer time
and/or use them when they pray with others.
Eph 6:17-18 says “And take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the
Spirit, which is the word of God. With every prayer and petition, pray at
all times in the Spirit, and to this end be alert, with all perseverance and
requests for all the saints.” The Word of God is the Spirit’s sword, not
ours; it is for Him to use as He sees fit. We hope that the starters will be
an instrument in the hands of the Holy Spirit to inform, inspire, and
invigorate the pray-ers as they start to prayer.
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I. Old Testament
A Prayer of David - Ps 25
This is a good portion of Scripture to meditate on as we go to
prayer and even to pray to God as our prayer. Our experiences are
not that much different from David’s, remember, "These things
happened to them as examples and were written for our
instruction, on whom the ends of the ages have come." 1 Cor
10:11
1-7 David speaks to the Lord for Himself
“1 O LORD, I come before you in prayer.” Prayer is a specific act,
not merely an attitude. It is something we do, not just think about.
“2 My God, I trust in you.” Trust here means “to confide in, so as
to be secure and without fear” Who else can we go to. None other
can understand or help.
“Please do not let me be humiliated; do not let my enemies
triumphantly rejoice over me!” David prays for himself as he
confronts his enemies. If we are in God’s will, our enemies and
God’s enemies are the same. God cannot be defeated and neither
can we.
“3 Certainly none who rely on you will be humiliated.” God is
trustworthy and will not fail us. David could sympathize and pray for
others because of his own experience. We can never go wrong
relying on God.
“Those who deal in treachery will be thwarted and humiliated.”
God will deal with the wicked in His time.
“ 4 Make me understand your ways, O Lord! Teach me your
paths!” This is the attitude of an effectual pray-er. We must seek
God with all of our heart and complete submission. We must be
teachable and leadable.
“5 Guide me into your truth and teach me.” Truth and doctrine
are inseparable from one who is in communion with God.
“For you are the God who delivers me; on you I rely all day
long.” It is vain to look for our help from any other source.
“6 Remember your compassionate and faithful deeds, O Lord,
for you have always acted in this manner.” It seems that we
humans constantly forget the goodness of the Lord, but He doesn’t
forget to be compassionate to us.
“7 Do not hold against me the sins of my youth or my
rebellious acts! Because you are faithful to me, extend to me
your favor, O Lord”
8-10 David acknowledges the character of the Lord
“8 The Lord is both kind and fair; that is why he teaches
sinners the right way to live. 9 May he show the humble what
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is right! May he teach the humble his way!” The proud cannot
learn the things of God nor can they pray when they have a
stubborn will.
“10 The Lord always proves faithful and reliable to those who
follow the demands of his covenant.” God’s methods and
objectives are always good to His people.
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David appeals to the Lord for forgiveness
“11 For the sake of your reputation, O Lord, forgive my sin,
because it is great.” David is concerned about God’s honor, he
want his sin forgiven and his life maintained so God will not be
dishonored. All of us have a great weight of sin but it is those who
come to God that feel it most. Feeling our sinfulness is not a
disqualification of coming to God but it is an integral part of it.
12-15 David speaks about what the Lord does
“12 The Lord shows his faithful followers the way they should
live. 13 They experience his favor; their descendants inherit
the land. 14 The Lord 's loyal followers receive his guidance,
and he reveals his covenantal demands to them. 15 I
continually look to the Lord for help, for he will free my feet
from the enemy's net.” They that pray to know God’s will are
assured to know it, understand what He wants from us and have
his protection. God reveals His secrets to those who dwell in
secret with Him. We have no greater enemy than our depraved
nature that so often snares us; but the Lord will deliver us as we
commune with Him.
16-22 David speaks to the Lord again
“16 Turn toward me and have mercy on me, for I am alone and
oppressed! 17 Deliver me from my distress; rescue me from
my suffering! 18 See my pain and suffering! Forgive all my
sins! 19 Watch my enemies, for they outnumber me; they hate
me and want to harm me. 20 Protect me and deliver me! Please
do not let me be humiliated, for I have taken shelter in you! 21
May integrity and godliness protect me, for I rely on you! 22 O
God, rescue Israel from all their distress! ” Many negative
words are used to describe David’s condition. When we are going
through the trials it feels as if we are alone. All we can do and all
we should do is rely on our God; He is able to rescue us.
r NET
++++++++++++++++++++
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The House of God - the Gate of Heaven
In Gen 28 we have the story of Jacob deceiving his father and his having
to leave for fear of Esau. Verses 12-19 tell us of the dream he had as he
traveled, “He saw a stairway erected on the earth with its top reaching to
the heavens. The angels of God were going up and coming down it and
the LORD stood at its top. He said, ‘I am the LORD, the God of your
grandfather Abraham and the God of your father Isaac. I will give you and
your descendants the ground you are lying on. Your descendants will be
like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west, east, north,
and south. All the families of the earth will pronounce blessings on one
another using your name and that of your descendants. I am with you! I
will protect you wherever you go and will bring you back to this land. I will
not leave you until I have done what I promised you!’ Then Jacob woke
up and thought, ‘Surely the LORD is in this place, but I did not realize it!’
He was afraid and said, ‘What an awesome place this is! This is nothing
else than the house of God! This is the gate of heaven!’ Early in the
morning Jacob took the stone he had placed near his head and set it up
as a sacred stone. Then he poured oil on top of it. He called that place
Bethel...” The Hebrew for Bethel means “house of God.” Jacob was
afraid but not with a servant-like fear, but child-like fear; not a fear of the
wrath and displeasure of God, but an awe of the greatness and glory of
God.
When Solomon had built “the LORD’s temple” the Lord appeared to him
and promised to accept their future repentance and then said in 2 Chr
7:15, “Now I will be attentive and responsive to the prayers offered in this
place. Now I have chosen and consecrated this temple by making it my
permanent home; I will be constantly present there.” Here God is making
prayer especially important and associating it with His presence. This is
not a reference to the omnipresence of God, but to His special and
spiritually manifested presence. Here we have the first physical
representation of “the house of God.”
Isaiah says in 56:5-8 “‘I will set up within my temple and my walls a
monument that will be better than sons and daughters...I will set up a
permanent monument for them that will remain. As for foreigners who
become followers of the LORD and serve him, who love the name of the
LORD and want to be his servants—all who observe the Sabbath and do
not defile it, and who are faithful to my covenant. I will bring them to my
holy mountain; I will make them happy in the temple where people pray to
me. Their burnt offerings and sacrifices will be accepted on my altar, for
my temple will be known as a temple where all nations may pray.’ The
sovereign LORD says this, the one who gathers the dispersed of Israel: ‘I
will still gather them up.’” Here we have again the temple, or “house of
God,” associated with prayer, but it includes more than the Israelites. It is
broadened to include ‘foreigners who become followers of the LORD...for
my temple will be known as a temple where all nations may pray.’” God
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intends His temple “the house of God” to have prayer as a prominent
ingredient.
Our Lord quotes this passage in Isaiah, “Then they came to Jerusalem.
Jesus entered the temple area and began to drive out those who were
selling and buying in the temple courts. He turned over the tables of the
moneychangers and the chairs of those selling doves, and he would not
permit anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts. Then he
began to teach them and said, ‘Is it not written: ‘My house will be called
a house of prayer for all nations’? But you have turned it into a den of
robbers.” Mk 11:15-17 Jesus was very upset about “God’s House” not
being used for prayer. We should ask ourselves, “How does the Lord
Jesus feel about our churches today that have fine buildings, great
organization, good entertainment and little or no prayer?” It is sadly
obvious that almost all of our churches are not characterized by prayer.
In 1 Tim 3:14,15 Paul tells Timothy “I am writing these instructions to
you...to let you know how people ought to conduct themselves in the
household of God.” He is referring to 1 Tim 2:1-3:13 where the first thing
he deals with is prayer-- “First of all, then, I urge that requests, prayers,
intercessions, and thanks be offered on behalf of all people...Such prayer
for all is good and welcomed before God our Savior...So I want the men
to pray in every place, lifting up holy hands without anger or dispute.”
Paul is instructing Timothy to lead the people of God to pray as a people
of God in “the house of God.”
If the “house of God” is to be a “house of Prayer,” then the leaders need
to lead the people to be proficient in this exercise. “It is a tremendous
responsibility to lead God’s people to God’s throne and into God’s
presence in public prayer. God can so strongly anoint the one who leads
in prayer that all present are brought into consciousness of God’s
presence until the one praying is forgotten and the people as one in heart
and soul unit and agree in the prayer.” Wesley Duewel, Mighty
Prevailing Prayer, p 129
When we put prayer in its proper place in “the house of God” that we are
worshiping in, we will say as Jacob did “This is nothing else than the
house of God! This is the gate of heaven!” Our prayer experience will be
like “a stairway erected on the earth with its top reaching to the heavens”
with the angels of God going up and coming down it and the LORD
standing at the top. Angels are messengers and represent our prayers
that go up and God’s responses that comes down. God will be at the top
speaking to us and we will stand in awe of the greatness and glory of
God.
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God dwells not only where, O’er saintly dust,
The Sweet bells greet the fairest morn of seven;
Wherever simple folk love, pray and trust,
Behold the House of God, the Gate of Heaven.
++++++++++++++++++++
Come to the morning-prayer;
Come, let us kneel and pray:
Prayer is the Christian pilgrim’s staff,
To walk with God all day.
At noon, beneath the Rock
Of Ages, rest and pray;
Sweet is that shelter from the heat,
When the sun smites by day.’
At evening, shut thy door;
Round the home-altar pray;
And, finding there the house of God,
At Heaven’s gate close the day.
When midnight veils our eyes,
Oh, it is sweet to say,
I sleep, but my heart waketh, Lord,
With thee to watch and pray.
James Montgomery (Quoted in Prayer and its Remarkable Answers,
William Patton p 32)
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++++++++++++++++++++
“By Many or by Few”
Nothing can prevent the LORD from delivering, whether by
18
many or by a few.
1 Sam 14:1-14 “1 Then one day Jonathan son of Saul said to the
servant who was carrying his equipment, “Come on, let’s go over to
the Philistine garrison that is opposite us.” But he did not let his
father know. 2 Now Saul was sitting at the outskirts of Gibeah
under a pomegranate tree in Migron. The army that was with him
numbered about six hundred men. 3 Now Ahijah was bearing an
ephod. He was the son of Ahitub, who was the brother of Ichabod
and a son of Phinehas, son of Eli, the priest of the LORD in Shiloh.
The army was unaware that Jonathan had left. 4 Now there was a
steep cliff on each side of the pass through which Jonathan
intended to go to reach the Philistine garrison. One cliff was named
Bozez, the other Seneh. 5 The cliff to the north was closer to
Micmash, the one to the south closer to Geba. 6 Jonathan said to
his servant who was carrying his equipment, “Come on, let’s go
over to the garrison of these uncircumcised men. Perhaps the LORD
will intervene for us. Nothing can prevent the LORD from
delivering, whether by many or by a few.”
Jonathan’s confidence was in his God not in himself or his army. God
gave Jonathan a victory that day even though all the odds and
circumstances were against him. “One of you makes a thousand run
away, for the LORD your God fights for you as he promised you he
would. Jos 23:10
Being few in number or weak in strength does not limit God. If God were
limited by us He would be dependent on us. Sometimes the opposite is
true, the greater the number and the supposed strength we have is an
hindrance to God. Note the experience of Gideon Jud 7:2— “The LORD
said to Gideon, “You have too many men for me to hand Midian
over to you. Israel might brag, ‘Our own strength has delivered us.’”
God proceeded to reduce the army from 32,000 men to 10,000 and the
Lord said “There are still too many men. ...” v 4 And He reduced them
to 300 men. That is less than 1% of the original number. If a church has
three hundred members, then three (1% of 300 is 3) or more members of
that local church praying rightly is a greater number than God let Gideon
have to fight and win the battle. Note the real reason why God reduced
Gideon’s army, “lest Israel claim glory for itself.” God will get more glory if
He does great things with few and feeble folk.
When David faced the Philistine he said, “The battle is the Lord’s” 1 Sam
17:47 David went on to boast in what he knew that His God would do,
“Then all this assembly shall know that the Lord does not save with sword
and spear; for the battle is the Lord’s and He will give you into our hands.”
God doesn’t need (He is even hindered by) our methods and schemes.
19
The question is not “What can we do with God’s help?” but “What does
God will to do.?”
Our effort and faithfulness is the occasion upon which God chooses to
exert His power to advance His kingdom. Infinite power is still infinite
even when exerted through small and insignificant instruments. God’s
omnipotence is not conditional or limited and cannot be added to. The
course of human history has always been directed by the dedicated few
not the casual majority. This is especially true when the dedicated few
are those striving for the Glory of God.
Why is this true ? Because the power is all in God. We cannot add to
omnipotence. 1 Cor 2:4 “My conversation and my preaching were
not with persuasive words of wisdom, but with a demonstration of
the Spirit and of power,” The Spirit can demonstrate Himself and His
power with many or few. Those of us praying and waiting on God may be
few but God is able “to do far beyond all that we ask or think.” Eph
3:20
The speedometer on a car is not what makes the car travel at the
indicated speed, it is the engine under the hood that makes the car move.
So it is with the work of God. Prayer and effort on our part are the
gauges that indicate what God is doing or is about to do.
2 Chr 14:11 “Asa prayed to the LORD his God: “O LORD, there is no
one but you that can help the weak when they are vastly
outnumbered. Help us, O LORD our God, for we rely on you and
have marched on your behalf against this huge army. O LORD our
God, don’t let men prevail against you!’” Note that Asa 1. prayed
“cried out.” 2. He acknowledged God’s power and ability, 3. He told God
he was trusting Him. 4. He went forward in God’s name. 5. He appealed
to God as sovereign over man. This makes for good praying.
It can easily be shown that all want of success, and all failure in the
spiritual life and in Christian work, is due to defective or insufficient
prayer. The Kneeling Christian
The Difference
I got up early one morning
and rushed right into the day;
I had so much to accomplish
that I didn’t have time to pray.
20
Problems just tumbled about me,
and heavier came each task.
“Why doesn’t God help me?” I wondered.
He answered, “You didn’t ask.”
I wanted to see joy and beauty,
but the day toiled on, gray and bleak;
I wondered why God didn’t show me.
He said, “But you didn’t seek.”
I tried to come into God’s presence;
I used all my keys at the lock.
God gently and lovingly chided,
“My child, you didn’t knock.”
I woke up early this morning,
and paused before entering the day;
I had so much to accomplish
that I had to take time to pray.
–Author unknown
rNET
++++++++++++++++++++
Prevailing Prayer as seen in Jacob
Gen 32
1. Prevailing Prayer pleads the promises. v 9
Gen 31:3 "Then the LORD said to Jacob, 'Return to the land of your
fathers and to your relatives, and I will be with you.'" This was Jacobs
personal direction from God. He also had God's promise and promises
must be prayed over. In the dream as Jacob left the land years
earlier God said, "Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever
you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I
have done what I have promised you." Gen 28:15 God loves to be
burdened with, and to be importuned in His own words; to be sued
upon His own bond. Prayer is putting the promises into suit. Such
21
prayers will be nigh the Lord day and night. Solomon said in his
prayer in 1 Ki 8:59 “And let these my words, wherewith I have made
supplication before the LORD, be nigh unto the LORD our God day
and night, that he maintain the cause of his servant, and the cause
of his people Israel at all times, as the matter shall require:” He can
as little deny them as deny Himself.
2. Prevailing Prayer confesses its unworthiness. v 10
We do not receive blessing because of our confession, but we are
not blest without it. Lk 18:13 “And the publican, standing afar off,
would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon
his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner.” Ja 5:16-“Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that
ye may be healed. The effectual, fervent prayer of a righteous man
availeth much.”
3. Prevailing Prayer asks definitely. v 11
Jacob knew what he wanted, and prayed accordingly. He had
offended and robbed his brother, and now he seeks deliverance
from his righteous anger. The Lord often over-rules our blunders to
our benefit and His own glory. Jacob not only prayed for himself,
but also for those who were near and dear to him.
4. Prevailing Prayer is to be alone with God. v 24
The words of Christ are “Pray in secret” Mat 6:6. Christ is our
Example in this, for He went to the mountain to pray, Mat 14:23.
By praying in secret we shall get revelations of His glory, as Daniel
did at the riverside Dan 8:16; we shall have the consciousness of
the presence of Christ, as John had on the Isle of Pathos Rev 1; we
shall be commissioned, as Peter was, when he was on the
housetop at Joppa Act 10:9; we shall meet the Rebekah’s of
blessing, as Isaac did, when meditating in the field Gen 24:63; and
we shall receive blessing, as Jacob did.
5. Prevailing Prayer is intensely earnest. v 25
This strife was not only corporeal, but spiritual; as well as by the
force of his faith, as strength of body. “He prevaileth” saith the
prophet Hosea 12:4, by prayers and tears. Our Saviour also
prayed Himself into “an agony” Lk 22:44; and we are bidden to
“strive in prayer” Rom 15:30; Nehemiah prayed himself pale Neh
2:2; Daniel prayed himself “sick” Dan 8:27. Hannah prayed,
22
striving with such an unusual motion of her lips, that old Eli, thought
her to be drunk 1 Sam 1:13. Elijah puts his head betwixt his
knees, as straining all the emotions of the heart in prayer 1 Kin
18:42. Every sound is not music, so neither is every uttering of
petitions to God a prayer. It is not the labor of the lips, but the
travail of the heart. Common beggary is the easiest and poorest
trade; but this beggary, as it is the richest so it is the hardest.
6. Prevailing Prayer is seen in a clinging faith. v 26
Jacob received no blessing while wrestling, but the wrestling led to
the blessing. The angel touched his thigh, and then he could
wrestle no more, but he held on the tighter, and would not let the
angel go till he received a blessing from him. Three boys gave a
definition of faith, which definitely illustrate the tenacity of Faith.
The first boy said, “It was taking hold of Christ;” the second,
“Keeping hold;” and the third, “not letting go.”
7. Prevailing Prayer is rewarded. v 28-30
Hos 12:3,4 In the womb he took his brother by the heel, And in his
maturity he contended with God. Yes, he wrestled with the
angel and prevailed; He wept and sought His favor. He found
Him at Bethel And there He spoke with us,
1. He got his name changed from Jacob, the suplanter, to Israel,
the prince of God.
2. He received definite blessing from God.
3. He was a testimony for God ever afterwards in his halting gait.
Prevailing prayer is when intellect, emotion, and will unite to take
hold of God.
Prevailing prayer is aggressive spiritual warfare.
23
Lord, I have wrestled through the livelong night
Do no depart,
Nor leave me thus in sad and weary plight,
Broken in heart;
Where shall I turn, if Thou shouldst go away,
And leave me here in this cold world to stay?
I have no other help, no food, no light
No hand to guide,
The night is dark, my home is not in sight,
The path untried;
I dare not venture in the dark alone–
I cannot find my way, if Thou be gone.
I cannot yet discern Thee, as thou art;
More let me see,
I cannot bear the thought that I must pass
Away from Thee:
I will not let Thee go, except Thou bless.
O, help me, Lord, in all my helplessness.
J. Sharp Gen 32
See also Mighty Prevailing Prayer, Wesley Duewel p 63
++++++++++++++++++++
The God of Hills and Plains
In 1 Kings 20:1-21 we have the record of God working through
Elijah to deliver king Ahab and the people from Ben Hadad of Syria.
After the miraculous victory the Scripture says in 20:22-30, “The
prophet visited the king of Israel and instructed him, ‘Go, fortify your
defenses. Determine what you must do, for in the spring the king of
Syria will attack you.’ Now the advisers of the king of Syria said to
him: ‘Their God is a god of the mountains. That’s why they
overpowered us. But if we fight them in the plains, we will certainly
overpower them. So do this: Dismiss the kings from their command,
and replace them with military commanders. Muster an army like
the one you lost, with the same number of horses and chariots.
Then we will fight them in the plains; we will certainly overpower
them.” He approved their plan and did as they advised. In the
spring Ben Hadad mustered the Syrian army and marched to
Aphek to fight Israel. When the Israelites had mustered and had
received their supplies, they marched out to face them in battle.
When the Israelites deployed opposite them, they were like two
small flocks of goats, but the Syrians filled the land. The prophet
visited the king of Israel and said, ‘This is what the LORD says:
Because the Syrians said, The LORD is a god of the mountains and
not a god of the valleys,’ I will hand over to you this entire huge
army. Then you will know that I am the LORD.’ The armies were
deployed opposite each other for seven days. On the seventh day
the battle began, and the Israelites killed one hundred thousand
Syrian foot soldiers in one day. The remaining twenty-seven
thousand ran to Aphek and went into the city, but the wall fell on
them. Now Ben Hadad ran into the city and hid in an inner room..”
Our God is not a God of one place or limited circumstances. Our
God is able to deliver us, answer prayer, and give us victory for His
glory, whether in the hills or in the plain.
Nebuchadnezzar learned this lesson from his temporary case of
Divine inflicted insanity “But at the end of the appointed time I,
Nebuchadnezzar, looked up toward heaven, and my sanity
returned to me. I blessed the Most High, and I praised and glorified
the one who lives forever. For his rule is an everlasting rule, and
his kingdom extends from one generation to the next. All the
inhabitants of the earth are regarded as nothing. He does as he
wishes with the army of heaven and with those who inhabit the
earth. No one slaps his hand and says to him, ‘What have you
done?” Dan 4:34,35
Whether in the 17th century or in the 21th century, God is able to
bless His people in a powerful way. Whether in Scotland or in
America, God is able to send a mighty revival. Whether in New
York City or Chicago or in Doolittle, Missouri, God is able to bless
His people. To God there is not a distinction of “big” or “small”. To
God all problems, enemies, barriers, circumstances, etc. are small.
He is infinite and omnipotent and that makes everything else small
and easily manageable.
When God was confirming the promise of a son to Abram, He
asked the question. “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Will I really
have a child when I am old?’ Is anything impossible for the LORD? I
will return to you when the season comes round again and Sarah
will have a son.” Gen 18:13,14
If you are in an airplane at 30,000 feet above the ground and look
down on a city you can’t tell the difference between a building over
an 100 feet tall and the sidewalk that is only 6 inches high. From
God’s perspective all things are the same in their size and power.
All power comes from Him. He created the world and all things
there in. All the kings and generals of the world have only
delegated power which God gave them and He can take away.
In the tenth year of the reign of Zedekiah Judah was under siege by
the Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. God told Jeremiah to buy
some land even though God had already revealed that Babylon
was going to destroy the city. Even though God was going to
destroy the city, He was also going to restore it and Jeremiah was
to buy the land as an evidence of faith in what God said He would
do. Jeremiah bought the land and in Jer 32:16-17 he says “After I
had given the copies of the deed purchase to Baruch son of Neriah,
I prayed to the LORD. I prayed, ‘Oh, Lord God, you did indeed make
heaven and earth by your mighty power and great strength. Nothing
is too hard for you!” The Lord answers Jeremiah’s Prayer In verses
26,27 “The Lord answered Jeremiah. He said, ‘I am the Lord, the
God of all mankind. There is, indeed, nothing too hard for me.’”
Eph 3:20-21 “Now to him who by the power that is working within
us is able to do far beyond all that we ask or think, to him be the
glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever
and ever. Amen.”
Brothers and Sisters–Pray, ask, seek, beseech, beg, knock,
command God unrelentingly. He can do whatever needs to be
done. He will do all His will.
The revival of religion and the revival of prayer are inseparable.
To strive in prayer means in the final analysis to take up the battle
against all the inner and outward hindrances which would
dissociate us from the Spirit of prayer. Prayer, O. Halesby, p 114
God moves in a mysterious way
His wonders to perform;
He plants His footsteps in the sea,
And rides upon the storm.
Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take;
The clouds ye so much dread
Are filled with mercies, and shall break
In blessings ’round thy head.
++++++++++++++++++++
Speaking to the Rock
There were two occasions where God instructed Moses to strike
“the rock.” The first incident was at Rephidim and the second was
at Kadesh nearly forty years later.
The first is recorded in Ex 17:1-7 (Then all the congregation of the sons of
Israel journeyed by stages from the wilderness of Sin, according to the command
of the LORD, and camped at Rephidim, and there was no water for the people to
drink. Therefore the people quarreled with Moses and said, “Give us water that
we may drink.” And Moses said to them, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do
you test the LORD?” But the people thirsted there for water; and they grumbled
against Moses and said, “Why, now, have you brought us up from Egypt, to kill
us and our children and our livestock with thirst?” So Moses cried out to the
LORD, saying, “What shall I do to this people? A little more and they will stone
me.” Then the LORD said to Moses, “Pass before the people and take with you
some of the elders of Israel; and take in your hand your staff with which you
struck the Nile, and go. “Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock at
Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it, that the people
may drink.” And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel. He named the
place Massah and Meribah because of the quarrel of the sons of Israel, and
because they tested the LORD, saying, “Is the LORD among us, or not?”) The
Psalmist praises God for this act of divine provision “Behold, he
smote the rock, that the waters gushed out, and the streams
overflowed; can he give bread also? can he provide flesh for his
people?” Ps 78:20
In the spirit of 1 Cor 10:11 “Now these things happened to them as
an example, and they were written for our instruction, upon whom
the ends of the ages have come.” we understand that Jesus is our
“Smitten Rock” from which all our needs are met. Isaiah said
“Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we
did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.” .... “Yet it
pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when
thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed,
he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall
prosper in his hand.” Isa 53:4,10 The water that flowed from the
rock is typical of the provision and blessings we have from our
smitten and suffering substitute.
The second occasion of God giving instruction to Moses about
“the rock” is in Num 20:1-12 (Then the sons of Israel, the whole
congregation, came to the wilderness of Zin in the first month; and the people
stayed at Kadesh. Now Miriam died there and was buried there. There was no
water for the congregation, and they assembled themselves against Moses and
Aaron. The people thus contended with Moses and spoke, saying, “If only we
had perished when our brothers perished before the LORD! “Why then have you
brought the LORD’S assembly into this wilderness, for us and our beasts to die
here? “Why have you made us come up from Egypt, to bring us in to this
wretched place? It is not a place of grain or figs or vines or pomegranates, nor is
there water to drink.” Then Moses and Aaron came in from the presence of the
assembly to the doorway of the tent of meeting and fell on their faces. Then the
glory of the LORD appeared to them; and the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
“Take the rod, and you and your brother Aaron assemble the congregation and
speak to the rock before their eyes, that it may yield its water. You shall thus
bring forth water for them out of the rock and let the congregation and their
beasts drink.” So Moses took the rod from before the LORD, just as He had
commanded him; and Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly before the rock.
And he said to them, “Listen now, you rebels; shall we bring forth water for you
out of this rock?” Then Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock twice with
his rod; and water came forth abundantly, and the congregation and their beasts
drank. But the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you have not
believed Me, to treat Me as holy in the sight of the sons of Israel, therefore
you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them.”)
Moses made a serious mistake which cost him a great blessing.
God told him “speak to the rock” v 7, but Moses “struck the rock
twice with his rod” v 7. Remaining consistent with our symbolism
of “the rock” being Christ we see that “our rock Christ” needs be
smitten only once for blessing to flow and there after we are to
speak to our Rock. God will still accomplish His plan, even when
we do not follow our instructions as we should. What our imperfect
obedience does is determine our relation to His plan. He will
accomplish all His will even when we don’t pray but we will be the
losers, and miss the promise land of joyous service. If we do
something because it has worked in the past or “because we have
always done it that way,” or if we refuse to do something differently
because “we have never done it that way before” then we are just
so much not serving God but serving our tradition and
preconceptions; yea, even serving ourselves.
One of the most popular religions parade around idol-like images of
the crucified Christ and teach in their religious service, the elements
of the Lord’s Supper actually become the flesh and blood of Christ
and are offered again and again. This is utter blasphemy and a
dishonor to our Lord.
It is now time to “speak” to our Rock, Jesus Christ and He will
supply all our needs. Jesus said of Himself “In that day you will not
question Me about anything. Truly, truly, I say to you, if you ask the
Father for anything in My name, He will give it to you. Until now you
have asked for nothing in My name; ask and you will receive, so
that your joy may be made full. In that day you will ask in My name,
and I do not say to you that I will request of the Father on your
behalf.” Jn 16:23,24,26
We are responsible for and guilty of our own spiritual poverty. “You
do not have because you do not ask.” Ja 4:2
We can believe the following only because it is the Divine Son of
God making the statement. “Whatever you ask in My name, that
will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask
Me anything in My name, I will do it.” Jn 14:13,14
The same rock that followed the Israleites is our rock and is with us,
“And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, ‘All authority has
been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make
disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father
and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I
commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of
the age.’” Matt 28:18-20 He has all authority and He is with us
until the end.
In speaking the our Rock we:
1. Exercise our relationship with Him, communion.
2. Realize the work of the Kingdom of God, guidance and supply for
ourselves and others.
O God enable us to ask great things of our Savior for His Glory.
++++++++++++++++++++
Our Ever Giving God
In chapter 36 Ezekiel is instructed to prophesy unto the mountains of
Israel v 1. In v 6,7 God says that because Israel has borne the shame of
the heathen they will bear their own shame. He proceeds to describe the
prosperity that is to come, v 8-15. In verse 16 the word of the Lord
comes again, recounts their sin, and God’s judgment on them 17-20 In
verses 21-23 God explains that what He does for them, “is not for your
sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for My holy name,
which you have profaned among the nations where you went.” In verses
24-25 we are told that God will replace them in the land and cleanse them
of their sin. In verses 26-32 God says he will give them a new heart and
explains what that involves. In verses 33-36 God says He will restore the
land. After this long explanation of what God will do, in v 37, He gives us
one more thing that He will do.
“Thus says the Lord GOD, ‘This also I will let the house of Israel ask
Me to do for them: I will increase their men like a flock.’”
One would think that God had done enough. Now, after all He had done,
God let’s them ask Him to do even more for them. It is as if God can’t
stop giving, as if He is infinite in His giving. Now He gives them the
privilege of prayer.
It is easy to see our selves in this story. We were thoroughly rebellious
sinners with no heart for God, just like the Israelites. Loving the world
and its pleasures and its idols more that God. But God came to us and
showed us our sin and our misery. He didn’t owe us anything, this He did
for His own glory. The Spirit of God worked in our lives first by giving us a
new heart, one that loved God and was willing to do His will. “God would
give a heart of flesh, a soft and tender heart, complying with his holy will.
Renewing grace works as great a change in the soul, as the turning a
dead stone into living flesh. God will put his Spirit within, as a Teacher,
Guide, and Sanctifier.” Matthew Henry
The New Testament language is being, “born again” into the family of
God, 1 Joh 5:1, and making us partakers of the Divine nature, 2 Pet 1:4.
Now we are in a far better place than the Israelites ever had; For He was
“raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in
Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing
riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.” Eph 2:6,7
One would think that God has done enough. Now, after all He has done,
God let’s us ask Him to do even more for us. It is as if God can’t stop
giving, as if He is infinite in His giving. Now He gives us the privilege of
prayer. We are told to “draw near with confidence to the throne of grace,
so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”
Heb 4:16 We are to be coming openly, unreservedly to the throne of
grace for what we need.
Jesus said “If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask
whatever you want, and it will be done for you.” Joh 14:7 Did that text
say “whatever you want?” Again He said “In that day you will not
question Me about anything. Truly, truly, I say to you, if you ask the
Father for anything in My name, He will give it to you.” Joh 16:23 The
“anything” of 14:7 sounds like the “Whatever” of 16:23. Did Jesus really
mean what He said?
About 130 years before Ezekiel, Isaiah said “On your walls, O Jerusalem,
I have appointed watchmen; All day and all night they will never keep
silent. You who remind the LORD, take no rest for yourselves; And give
Him no rest until He establishes And makes Jerusalem a praise in the
earth.” Isa 62:6,7 This is our ever-giving God encouraging us to give him
no rest until He gives the blessing.
It is obvious that part of God’s plan of blessing us is to move us to pray
for His blessings. If we are not praying, we are not in the will of God and
not in a condition to be blest of God. This is a direct proportionate
relationship. The more we pray the more we are blest.
What a great encouragement to know that God has designed into His
plans our asking for what He is doing. Many things He has accomplished
without our involvement such as creation and things too mysterious for
our finite minds, but much of what God wants to do He requires us to ask
Him to do. It is the will of God that we pray for those things He wants us
to have. It is the process of asking that prepares us for the answer.
There is no surer way to have our prayers answered than to pray in the
will of God.
Yes, God is infinite in His giving. God will be giving us of Himself for
eternity. God said to Abraham, I am your exceeding great reward.” Gen
15:1, Num 18:20 It is surprising enough that God would bless us wicked
sinners, but then to let us have a part in fulfilling of His plans, that is more
than one could have dreamed.
It is all of God; His determination to bless, the giving us a desire to be
blessed, and giving us the privilege of praying for His will.
Come, my soul, thy suit prepare:
Jesus loves to answer prayer;
He himself has bide thee pray,
Therefore will not say thee nay.
Thou art coming to a King,
Large petitions with thee bring;
For his grace and power are such,
None can ever ask too much.
++++++++++++++++++++
Arguing with God**
After the children of Israel had made the golden calf – “Then the
LORD spoke to Moses, ‘Go down at once, for your people, whom
you brought up from the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves.
8 They have quickly turned aside from the way which I commanded
them. They have made for themselves a molten calf, and have
worshiped it and have sacrificed to it and said, This is your god, O
Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt! 9 The LORD said
to Moses, I have seen this people, and behold, they are an
obstinate people. 10 Now then let Me alone, that My anger may
burn against them and that I may destroy them; and I will make of
you a great nation.11 Then Moses entreated the LORD his God, and
said, “O LORD, why does Your anger burn against Your people
whom You have brought out from the land of Egypt with great
power and with a mighty hand? 12 Why should the Egyptians
speak, saying, ‘With evil intent He brought them out to kill them in
the mountains and to destroy them from the face of the earth’? Turn
from Your burning anger and change Your mind about doing harm
to Your people. 13 Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, Your
servants to whom You swore by Yourself, and said to them, ‘I will
multiply your descendants as the stars of the heavens, and all this
land of which I have spoken I will give to your descendants, and
they shall inherit it forever.’ 14 So the LORD changed His mind
about the harm which He said He would do to His people.” Ex
32:7-14
It is almost as if Moses began His prayer in disobedience. God
said “Now then let Me alone, that My anger may burn against
them and that I may destroy them;” If there is such a thing as
“holy disobedience” this must be it. God said “no” and Moses said
“O LORD, why.” All of us parents have experienced this from our
children, and sometimes we gave into their requests. Moses began
arguing with God because He had an overwhelming love for the
people. God especially likes intercessory prayer, it is the ministry
that our Lord has now as we try to serve Him and fail just as
miserably as the Israelites. “George Mueller urged us to use ‘holy
argument in prayer.’ Sibbes urged strong arguments because ‘they
are of use and force to prevail with God.’ This is exactly what
Moses did. It is what Luther and other men of importunate power
have done.” Mighty Prevailing Prayer, Wesley Duewel p 297
“I will make of you a great nation.” Moses cared not for himself
but only for the people he wanted to see blest. This “arguing with
God” kind of praying is not for one’s self, but for another. To argue
with God we must be totally submitted to His will. Even our Lord
had to practice submission, “Then He said to them, “My soul is
deeply grieved, to the point of death; remain here and keep watch
with Me.” And He went a little beyond them, and fell on His face
and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass
from Me; yet not as I will, but as You will.” Mat 26:38,39 This kind
of praying requires a total abandonment of one’s self-interest.
Moses argued that the people are His people, “why does Your
anger burn against Your people?” How could God forget His
people. They were the sheep of His pasture and He could not give
them to the wolves.
Moses argued that God would be inconsistent if he brought the
“whom You have brought out from the land of Egypt.” Did God
start something that he could not finish, “I don’t think so.” Surely
God could not be caught without a plan to finish His work.
Moses argued from the fact that God is all-powerful, “with great
power and with a mighty hand?” God was a powerful God to
deliver them from Egypt and He was still powerful a God to deliver
them from themselves. God saved us from His wrath to come and
can yet save us from our sinful habits.
“Why should the Egyptians speak, saying, ‘With evil intent He
brought them out to kill them in the mountains and to destroy
them from the face of the earth?” Moses argued that the
Egyptians would say that God intended to do them harm. Moses
knew that God was a good God and did not have any evil plan.
The Egyptians needed to know that Jehovah is not like the other
gods in Egypt. Moses argued for the glory of God’s name.
Moses makes his argument clear and unmistakable. “Turn from
Your burning anger and change Your mind about doing harm
to Your people.” Sometimes we error in our praying by not being
specific. We need to have a specific burden and express it to God.
One can be more insistent with God when he praying for another’s
need.
“Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, Your servants to
whom You swore by Yourself, and said to them, ‘I will multiply
your descendants as the stars of the heavens,’” Moses argued
from the history of God’s redeeming acts for Israel. Moses argued
from God’s faithfulness to His loyal servants Abraham, Isaac and
Israel, and from the promises to them. Moses is saying, “God you
said you would multiply their descendants not destroy them so you
can’t destroy them now.”
“and all this land of which I have spoken I will give to your
descendants, and they shall inherit it forever.’ Moses argued
from the promises that the people would inherit the land not be
destroyed. God does not make promises and not keep them.
“So the LORD changed His mind about the harm which He said
He would do to His people.” Or so it would seem. God never
really intended to destroy the people of Israel. He caused Moses to
think that so he could be exercised to intercede for Israel. As
Moses was conformed to the likeness of Christ in His intercession
so are we when we give mighty arguments in praying for God’s
people. “The man who has his mouth full of arguments in prayer
shall soon have his mouth full of benedictions in answer to prayer.”
C.H. Spurgeon
Only one who has established an imitate relationship with God can
speak so boldly. “Thus the LORD used to speak to Moses face to
face, just as a man speaks to his friend.” Ex 33:11 Being faithful to
a secret life with God will give one the intimacy and boldness to
argue with God. When a church gives corporate prayer its proper
place then it can be a mighty force for God in the world.
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A Praying King
In Isaiah 36 and 37 we find an interesting story about Hezekiah
king of Judah.
Our story begins in chapter 36:1 “Sennacherib king of Assyria came
up against all the fortified cities of Judah and seized them.” In v 18
Sennacherib’s messenger says “Beware that Hezekiah does not
mislead you, saying, ‘The LORD will deliver us.’ Has any one of the
gods of the nations delivered his land from the hand of the king of
Assyria? ” Hezekiah’s reaction is “silence.” He does not argue with
the enemies of God. It is vain to argue with the wicked. We
should, as the old song says, “take our burdens to the Lord and
leave them there.” Prayer is the answer to more of our problems
that any of us realize. There isn’t anything that we should not pray
about.
Instead of arguing with the enemy “he tore his clothes, covered
himself with sackcloth and entered the house of the LORD.” and
sent a messenger to Isaiah (37:1,2) Here Hezekiah does three
things. He humbles himself. He goes to the house of the Lord. He
asked for help from someone who knows God. We would do well
to follow Hezekiah’s example in the problems of our lives. Both
personally and corporately we must humbly acknowledge our sin
and repent from it. God will not hear us if we ignore our sin and do
nothing about it. There is a time and place for personal prayer and
there is a time and place for corporate prayer. Acts 12 gives us a
similar confrontation with prayer as the remedy. Hezekiah also
calls on someone that knew God to share his burden, that is, to be
an intercessor. It is right to both ask for others to pray with us and
for us to pray with others.
Isaiah’s response was “Thus says the LORD, ‘Do not be afraid
because of the words that you have heard, with which the servants
of the king of Assyria have blasphemed Me. Behold, I will put a
spirit in him so that he will hear a rumor and return to his own land.
And I will make him fall by the sword in his own land.’” verses 6,7
Hezekiah could not have received a greater encouragement. To
hear a Word from God in the midst of our trouble can turn a fiery
trial into a sunny beach.
Now what does Hezekiah do? Rest on the assurance that all will
be well and go on with His normal life. No, He does what might
appear to some a contradiction. In possession of God’s promise of
deliverance Hezekiah sets himself to prayer. Notice where he
prays. “Then Hezekiah took the letter from the hand of the
messengers and read it, and he went up to the house of the LORD
and spread it out before the LORD.” Hezekiah went to the “house
of the Lord,” the place of prayer. At the dedication of this temple,
house of the Lord, King Solomon in 1 Kin 8:33,34 prayed for just
such an occasion “When Your people Israel are defeated before
an enemy, because they have sinned against You, if they turn to
You again and confess Your name and pray and make supplication
to You in this house, then hear in heaven, and forgive the sin of
Your people Israel, and bring them back to the land which You
gave to their fathers” It times like these we need open,
unashamed, bold, unreserved, humble, public prayer.
Notice what the letter says in verses 10-13 and what Hezekiah
prays in verse 14 “he sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying, Thus
you shall say to Hezekiah king of Judah, Do not let your God in
whom you trust deceive you, saying, Jerusalem will not be given
into the hand of the king of Assyria. Behold, you have heard what
the kings of Assyria have done to all the lands, destroying them
completely. So will you be spared? Did the gods of those nations
which my fathers have destroyed deliver them, even Gozan and
Haran and Rezeph and the sons of Eden who were in Telassar?
Where is the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, the king of the city
of Sepharvaim, and of Hena and Ivvah?”
The unbelievers slandered God in saying that God was deceiving
them with the false hope of deliverance. Other kingdoms have not
been spared so you cannot expect to be spared. The fatal flaw in
the logic of these unbelieving men is that God is no different than
the other gods. Isn’t this the assumption in our pluralistic society?
Everyone’s god is as good as anyone else’s god. Just as long as
you are sincere. Sad to say, our modern brand of Christianity (?) is
not appearing to be any different that any other religion.
Notice the content of Hezekiah’s prayer in verses 14-22. He
spread the letter and symbolically said, “God, here is the problem, I
give it to you. I can’t deal with it; it is up to you to deliver us.” v 14
In verses 15 & 16 Hezekiah extols God and honors Him as the sole
supreme and only God. “You are the God, You alone, of all the
kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth.” In
verse 17 Hezekiah ask God to hear his prayer and deal with
Sennacherib who has reproached God. In verses 18 & 19
Hezekiah acknowledges the enemy’s accomplishments and in
essence says I am defenseless against them. In verse 20
Hezekiah makes his specific request, “O LORD our God, deliver us
from his hand” and equally important he gives the reason why God
should answer this request “that all the kingdoms of the earth may
know that You alone, LORD, are God.” With a motive like this we
can be assured that God will answer prayer. Having a wrong
motive can void our prayer, Ja 4:3.
Isaiah gives an interesting conclusion, to this prayer in verses 2138. He begins by saying “Because you have prayed” and ends by
giving a word from God, “For I will defend this city to save it for My
own sake and for My servant David’s sake.” Hezekiah ask for
God’s help “that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that You
alone, LORD, are God” and God says “I will defend this city to save
it for My own sake”
Isn’t this what America needs? Praying leaders that will
acknowledge the real problems, basically our sin as a nation, the
danger we face and our inability to deal with it. It is not “United we
stand” but “United in our sin we fall before God and our enemies.”
Our only hope is going to God as Hezekiah did.
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Elijah, a Man Of Prayer
“Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one
another so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a
righteous man can accomplish much. Elijah was a man with a
nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and
it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months. Then he
prayed again, and the sky poured rain and the earth produced its
fruit. ” Jam 5:16-18
In 1 Kings 18 we find the story of how Elijah prayed down the fire of
God. To understand why this prayer was so effective we need to
look at the historical context. All of chapter 1 Kings 18 needs to be
read carefully but here are our observations.
1. Prolonged Faithfulness. Our story begins in the third year of a
famine “Now it happened after many days that the word of the
LORD came to Elijah in the third year, saying, "Go, show yourself to
Ahab, and I will send rain on the face of the earth.” v 1 Remember
Elijah had been praying for at three years. He was being faithful
and ready to obey. Faithfulness and abiding in our God is the
womb out of which true prayer is born.
2. Elijah Had Specific Instructions From God. "Go, show yourself
to Ahab, and I will send rain on the face of the earth." v 1 Many times
we go when we have not been sent, but not Elijah, he knew how to
wait on God. We have the blessings of God in direct proportion to
our obedience. v 2 "So Elijah went to show himself to Ahab."
3. It Was a Time Of Judgment and Leanness. “The famine was
severe in Samaria.” v 2 Times of leanness are times for faithfulness
and prayer. It is appropriate and sometimes the purpose for which
God has brought leanness on us. In verse 18 Elijah says to Ahab “I
have not troubled Israel, but you and your father's house have, because
you have forsaken the commandments of the LORD and you have
followed the Baals.”
4. He Based His Prayer On A Definite Promise Of God. “I will
send rain on the face of the earth.” v 1 The specifics that we ask for in
prayer are not conjured up from within us. They are not
empowered by our enthusiasm, but by the will of a Sovereign God.
We must be sure that we are thinking God’s thoughts and not our
own.
5. He Fulfilled The Condition Attached To The Promise. “So
Elijah went to show himself to Ahab.” v 2 This was no small thing
because wicked Ahab had been searching for Elijiah, Ahab's
servant said, “there is no nation or kingdom where my master has not
sent to search for you;” v 10 Sometimes obedience is scary but it is
always necessary.
6. A Public And Personal Confrontation. Elijah calls for a
confrontation in verse 19, “Now then send and gather to me all Israel at
Mount Carmel, together with 450 prophets of Baal and 400 prophets of
the Asherah, who eat at Jezebel's table.” The Baal worshipers were
not short on enthusiasm “When midday was past, they raved until the
time of the offering of the evening sacrifice; ” v 29 The enemies of
God are zealous in service of their false religions. We pray that our
God will manifest Himself in power and glory.
7. Elijah Honored The Revealed Will Of God By Repairing The
Altars. The worship of Jehovah had not been maintained so Elijah
repaired the altar of the LORD that had been torn down. “Elijah took
twelve stones according to the number of the tribes of the sons of
Jacob, to whom the word of the LORD had come, saying, "Israel
shall be your name. So with the stones he built an altar in the name
of the LORD, and he made a trench around the altar, large enough
to hold two measures of seed. Then he arranged the wood and cut
the ox in pieces and laid it on the wood. And he said, "Fill four
pitchers with water and pour it on the burnt offering and on the
wood." And he said, "Do it a second time," and they did it a second
time. And he said, "Do it a third time," and they did it a third time. ”
v 31-34 This drenching the sacrifice was going to make it
abundantly clear that what God does is undeniably His doing. Too
often we try to help God when we ought to be obeying, even if it
means doing things that appear contrary to God’s will.
8. A 30 Second Prayer With A Right Motive. The power of
Elijah’s prayer was not in the 60-70 words he said, nor in the way
he said it, or even in the circumstances in which he said it. He
experienced such powerful manifestation because God was
working “At the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, Elijah the
prophet came near and said, "O LORD, the God of Abraham, Isaac and
Israel, today let it be known that You are God in Israel and that I am Your
servant and I have done all these things at Your word. Answer me, O
LORD, answer me, that this people may know that You, O LORD, are
God, and that You have turned their heart back again.” v 36 ,37
9. True Answer To Prayer Honors God. “Then the fire of the
LORD fell and consumed the burnt offering and the wood and the
stones and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench.
When all the people saw it, they fell on their faces; and they said,
"The LORD, He is God; the LORD, He is God." v 38,39
10. The Foundation Is Laid To Deal With Needs. “Then Elijah
said to them, Seize the prophets of Baal; do not let one of them
escape. So they seized them; and Elijah brought them down to the
brook Kishon, and slew them there. Now Elijah said to Ahab, Go
up, eat and drink; for there is the sound of the roar of a heavy
shower. The ears of faith can hear the blessing of answered prayer
before the fact. Once we are right with God personally and
corporately we can experience the blessing of God.
Let’s pray that God will do something that is undeniably of Him
A great prayer and a great victory for God and His people, let's not
forget that Elijah had been alone with God for over three years. It
takes a lot of faithful “behind the scenes” praying to make visible
victory like Elijah’s. A church that prays in the lonely nights will see
the blessings on Sunday mornings. “But you, when you pray, go
into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who
is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will
reward you.”
The victories won by prayer;
By prayer must still be held;
The foe retreats, but only when
By prayer he is compelled.
Anonymous
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II. New Testament
But Prayer
In Acts 12:1-18 we have a story of a prayer meeting that got it’s
answer
while they were praying.
“About that time King Herod laid hands on some from the church to harm
them. He had James, the brother of John, executed with a sword. When
he saw that this pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter too. (This
took place during the feast of Unleavened Bread.) When he had seized
him, he put him in prison, handing him over to four squads of soldiers to
guard him. Herod planned to bring him out for public trial after the
Passover. So Peter was kept in prison...” Ac 12:1-5
God is making darkness for His light to shine into, so that, we will better
appreciate it and He will be more glorified. When diamonds are displayed
it is done on a black background under bright lights. The black
background gives contrast for the light that come through the diamond.
God let all the circumstances build against these early Christians and
especially Peter. He shines His grace and goodness on them and they
sparkle for His glory. God is still bigger than all the circumstances even
though they are combined in a single event. Things looked bad, the
execution of James, the arrest of Peter and under heavy guard, the
cruelty of Herod, the hatred of the Jews, but it is simply a matter of God
having them where He wants them for His purpose.
Everything was about as bad as it could be—“But.” But someone
prayed. “but those in the church were earnestly praying to God for
him.” Not just a repeated prayer like “now I lay me down to sleep.” Nor,
was it individual or momentary prayer. It was corporate prayer that was
earnest. They had important things to be earnest about. So do we, the
difference between them and the average church today is that they felt
the urgency and they prayed. The average church today is content and
unconcerned wile being surrounded with problems of eternal
consequences. Luke says they were “earnestly praying.” Literally it could
be translated “They were continually stretching themselves out.” This
was no doubt some serious praying. This is the kind of praying that is
necessary to advance the kingdom of God today.
In Eph 2:16 we have another “but,” the Divine “but” of our salvation that
“And although you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2 in which
you formerly lived according to this world’s present path, according to the
ruler of the kingdom of the air, the ruler of the spirit that is now energizing
the sons of disobedience, 3 among whom all of us also formerly lived out
our lives in the cravings of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and
the mind, and were by nature children of wrath even as the rest… 4 But
God, being rich in mercy, because of his great love with which he loved
us, 5 even though we were dead in transgressions, made us alive
together with Christ—by grace you are saved!— 6 and he raised us up
with him and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus.”
We were lost , dead, hopless, worthless–“but God.” This made all the
difference. The “but” of Eph 2 and the “but” of Acts 12 illustrate both the
divine and human energies involved in advancing the Kingdom of God.
“On that very night before Herod was going to bring him out for trial, Peter
was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, while guards
in front of the door were keeping watch over the prison. Suddenly an
angel of the Lord appeared, and a light shone in the prison cell. He struck
Peter on the side and woke him up, saying, “Get up quickly!” And the
chains fell off Peter’s wrists. The angel said to him, “Fasten your belt and
put on your sandals.” Peter did so. Then the angel said to him, ‘Put on
your cloak and follow me.’ Peter went out and followed him; he did not
realize that what was happening through the angel was real, but thought
he was seeing a vision. 10 After they had passed the first and second
guards, they came to the iron gate leading into the city. It opened for them
by itself, and they went outside and walked down one narrow street, when
at once the angel left him. When Peter came to himself, he said, ‘Now I
know for certain that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me from the
hand of Herod and from everything the Jewish people were expecting to
happen.’ When Peter realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the
mother of John Mark, where many people had gathered together and
were praying.” Ac 12:6-12
In the Divine order of things prayer is the circumstantial cause of what is
prayed for and realized. God could have delivered Peter without the
prayer meeting. But “Through prayer God gives humankind the dignity of
limited causality.” Pascal God could fulfill the “Great Commission”
without our involvement but He gives us the priviledge of being involved,
to give, to pray, and to sacrifice for His glory. God is the first cause and
ultimate cause of all things and He includes in His plan instrumental and
circumstantial causes.
“When he knocked at the door of the outer gate, a slave girl named
Rhoda answered. When she recognized Peter’s voice, she was so
overjoyed she did not open the gate, but ran back in and told them that
Peter was standing at the gate. But they said to her, “You’ve lost your
mind!” But she kept insisting that it was Peter, and they kept saying, “It is
his angel!” Now Peter continued knocking, and when they opened the
door and saw him, they were greatly astonished. He gave them a signal
with his hand to be quiet and then related to them how the Lord had
brought him out of the prison. He said, “Tell James and the brothers these
things,” and then he left and went to another place.” Ac 12:13-17
It seems that it was harder for Peter to get into the prayer meeting that it
was for him to get out of jail. I wonder if God feel like it is harder to get
His people praying that it is to get His preacher out of jail. The answer
was just too good to be true.., “You’ve lost your mind!” they said to
Rhoda. There is nothing that encourages the people of God more than
God’s answer to prayer, especially when it is their own prayer that He has
answered. In our prayer meetings we need to prayer for specific needs
and to share the answers to those prayers.
Prayer is at the same time the greatest and most unused resource that
Christians have. It ought to be the first recourse and the most used
resource we have. There is nothing that we cannot pray about. If it
weren’t for times like these we wouldn’t pray at all. It is the trial and
suffering that makes us pray. Many of us can testify that we do our best
and maybe our only real praying when there is a crisis.
What is the state of our families and of our churches. When David saw
the Philistine giant, Goliath, he expressed his concern and his brothers
scolded him but he said, “What have I now done? Is there not a
cause?” 1 Sam 17:29 There was a cause for David to take action and
such is it with us. We can conquer all of our enemies and problems with
prevailing prayer. History is replete with situations in which someone
prayed. There are great needs today, will you be one that will pray.
God has appointed prayer as his way of dispensing, and our way of
obtaining all promised good. The Prayer Meeting and Its History, J. B.
Johnston
A church is never more like the New Testament church than when it is
praying.
He answered prayer–not in the way I sought
Nor in the way that I had thought He ought;
But in His own good way; and I could see
He answered in the fashion best for me.
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Jesus’ Dying Prayers
Jesus prayed three times while He was on the Cross. We have all
heard of “death bed” prayers. Jesus died a death completely
different from the comforts of a bed. He used His dying breath to
pray for others and commit Himself to God.
1. His prayer of intercession.
Lk 23:32-34 “Two others also, who were criminals, were being led
away to be put to death with Him. 33 When they came to the place
called The Skull, there they crucified Him and the criminals, one on
the right and the other on the left. 34 But Jesus was saying,
“Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.”
And they cast lots, dividing up His garments among themselves." It
is easy for us to pray for those nearest to us that we love and who
love us. We even pray for our friends. Our “Christianity” is not very
Biblical if this is the only way we pray. Jesus had already taught us
how to pray “You have heard that it was said, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE
YOUR NEIGHBOR and hate your enemy.’ 44 “But I say to you, love
your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you
may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His
sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the
righteous and the unrighteous. 46 “For if you love those who love
you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do
the same?” Mat 5:43-46 Jesus now practices what he taught
others to do. Jesus could have prayed for the Father to extinguish
his persecutors, He was not deserving of such treatment and it
would have been right for God to end it all and throw the wicked
men into Hell fire. Instead, Jesus prayed for their forgiveness.
What an example for us in our prayer life. If we can’t pray for
someone who hates us, then we haven’t really learned to pray.
What about the person that has lied about us or cheated us out of
something we should have had or just hurt our feelings? Can our
prayers stand the test?
2. His prayer of confession.
Matt 27:45,46 “Now from the sixth hour darkness fell upon all the
land until the ninth hour. 46 About the ninth hour Jesus cried out
with a loud voice, saying, “ELI, ELI, LAMA SABACHTHANI?” that is, “MY
GOD, MY GOD, WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME?” Out of Jesus’ darkest
hour we can hear Him pour out His heart to God. Not the
confession of sin, for Jesus never sinned and could not sin. “He
made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we
might become the righteousness of God in Him.” 2 Corth 5:21
Jesus did not have any personal knowledge of sin and therefore
had no sin to confess. But He did confess His true feelings to His
Father. When all the world around us goes dark, can our voice be
heard crying out to God? The Son of God that had never, from
eternity past, known a moment of separation from the Father’s
loving fellowship was now forsaken. Jesus suffered the loss of the
presence of God for a short time so we would not have to suffer
that for ever. In a time when things were the most opposite to
everything He had ever known, He confessed His true feelings.. So
must we, be completely open and honest with God. “And there is
no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid
bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do.” Heb 4:13
3. His prayer of resignation.
Lk 23:46 “And Jesus, crying out with a loud voice, said, “Father,
INTO YOUR HANDS I COMMIT MY SPIRIT.” Having said this, He breathed
His last.” Each one of us is going to breath our last. None of us
know when it will be, therefore, we should live as if each day were
the day we would breath our last. Jesus was a dying sacrifice
totally resigned to the will of His Father so should we be a living
sacrifice totally committed to our Father’s will. “Therefore I urge
you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a
living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual
service of worship.” Rom 12:1 This is the way to glorify God and
satisfy our souls. Each morning when we awake we should,
commit our lives into the hands of our Father, in every experience
of our life we should commit it all to our Father, our every desire
should be submitted to the sovereign will of our Father. “I have
been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ
lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in
the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.” Gal
2:20 Our prayer life should acknowledge our complete commitment
to the will of God. We should verbalize this as Jesus did, we
should express our love for our God and our desire to be
completely committed to Him in everything and ask for His help to
live such a life.
He prayed upon the mountain,
He prayed for you and me,
He prayed in humble dwellings,
He prayed beside the sea.
He prayed in early morning,
Prayed with all His might,
He prayed at noonday and at dusk,
He prayed all thro’ the night.
He prayed for those who scorned Him,
For those who killed Him, too,
He prayed, “Father forgive them:
They know not what they do.”
He prayed when He was lonely,
He prayed when He was sad,
He prayed when He was weary,
He prayed when He was glad.
He prayed for those in sorrow,
He prayed for those in sin,
He prayed for those in trouble
That they might come to Him
D.W.L.
++++++++++++++++++++
Prayer Meetings
Condensed from a sermon by C. H. Spurgeon
“These all continued with one accord in prayer and
supplication.”— Acts 1:14
The subject, therefore, this evening, suggested to me by the fact
that we are going to meet for a day of prayer to-morrow, is that of
prayer-meetings —assemblies of the people of God for worship of
that peculiar kind which consists in each one expressing his desire
before the Lord. Let us then go through very briefly: —
I. The Apostolical History of Meetings for Prayer.
They were, doubtless, every-day things. The first meeting for prayer
which we find after our Lord’s ascension to heaven is the one
mentioned in the text, and we are led from it to remark that united
prayer is the comfort of a disconsolate church. Can you judge
of the sorrow which filled the hearts of the disciples when their Lord
was gone from them? They were an army without a leader, a flock
without a shepherd, a family without a head. In the deep desolation
of their spirits they resorted to prayer. They were like a flock of
sheep that will huddle together in a storm, or come closer each to
its fellow when they hear the sound of the wolf. Poor defenseless
creatures as they were, they yet loved to come together, and would
die together if need be. They felt that nothing made them so
happy, nothing so emboldened them, nothing so strengthened them
to bear their daily difficulties as to draw near to God in common
supplication. Beloved, let every church learn the value of its prayermeetings in its dark hour. There is but one remedy for these and a
thousand other evils, and that one remedy is contained in this short
sentence, “Let us pray.” One of the first uses of the prayermeeting, then, is to encourage a discouraged people.
Again, if you look at the second chapter of the Acts of the Apostles,
you will perceive that the prayer-meeting is the place for the
reception of divine power. “They were all with one accord in one
place,” making their prayer, and, as they waited there, suddenly
they heard the sound as of a rushing, mighty wind, and the cloven
tongues descended upon them, and they were clothed with the
power which Jesus had promised them. Common fishermen
became the extraordinary messengers of heaven. Illiterate men
spake with tongues that they had never themselves heard. Now,
the great want of the Church in all times is the power of the Holy
Ghost. Now, if we want to get this, the most likely place in which to
find it is the prayer-meeting. Oh! yes, this is the place to meet with
the Holy Ghost, and this is the way to get his mighty power. If we
would have him, we must meet in greater numbers; we must pray
with greater fervency, we must watch with greater earnestness, and
believe with firmer steadfastness. The next incident in this apostolic
history you will find in Acts 4:31 and there you will see that the
prayer-meeting is the resource of a persecuted church. Peter
and John had been shut up in prison. They resorted to prayer, and
we read that “when they had prayed, the place was shaken where
they were assembled together, and they were all filled with the Holy
Ghost, and they spake the Word of God with boldness; and the
multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul.”
Anything that would make us pray would be a blessing, and if ever
we should come to times of persecution again we must fly to the
shadow of the Eternal, and keeping close together in simple,
intense prayer, we shall find a shelter from the blast. In Acts 12
you find the prayer-meeting made a means of individual
deliverance. Peter was in prison, and Herod promised himself the
great pleasure of putting him to death. He was sleeping one night
betwixt two soldiers, chained, and the keepers of the door kept the
prison. But prayer was made without ceasing of the Church unto
God for him. And so in the middle of the night an angel smote Peter
upon the side, and raised him up, and his chains fell off; he put his
garments about him; every door opened as he advanced, and Peter
found himself in the street, and wondered whether he was awake,
or whether it was a vision. In Acts 13:13 we find a prayer-meeting
suggesting missionary operations. Whilst the servants of God
were met together in fasting and in prayer, the Holy Spirit said,
“Separate me Barnabas and Saul, for the work whereunto I have
called them,” and when they had fasted and prayed, and laid their
hands on them, they sent them away. I think if we were oftener on
our knees about God’s work, we should oftener do right, and the
right methods and the right men, and the right plans would come to
us. Oh! that we would but pray for such men, and, having got them,
pray that God would make them full of himself, for they cannot run
over with blessings to others, until they are full of blessing
themselves. We should understand what the prayer-meeting is, if
we did this. What was the first Christian service that was held
in Europe? Do you know? Why, it was a prayer-meeting, in Acts
16. Paul went to the place where prayer was wont to be made by
the river-side, and there he met with Lydia, and preached to her,
and her heart was so opened that she received the truth. Very
often, I do not doubt, in a Christian enterprise, the first foothold that
a cause gets is the prayer-meeting. This, then, is the missionary’s
lever; he begins with the prayer-meeting. I have gone through the
early history of prayer-meetings, and shown you the extreme value
of such to the Church of God.
II. What Are the Uses of the Prayer-meeting?
The prayer-meeting is useful to us in itself, and also very useful
from the answer which its gets. It is a very useful thing for
Christians to pray with each other, even apart from the answer.
God has made our piety to be a thing which shall be personal, but
yet he looks for family piety and makes us feel that all the saints are
our brethren and sisters, and that, therefore, our meetings as
Christian families, and as Christian Churches in the prayer-meeting,
become the natural outgrowth of social godliness. The prayermeeting sometimes also generates devotion. Some of the
brethren may be very dull and heavy, but others who are at that
time in a lively state of mind may stimulate and excite them. When
you have been busy all the day, and are not able to shake off the
cares of business, you get warmed up by getting near to each other
in your prayers. And, more than that, the united fires being placed
together on the hearth, the fire-brands are made to burn with
greater power. There is a kind of divine force comes upon us
sometimes at the prayer-meeting. Oh! it is a grand thing thus to be
made fit again, with joints all oiled, and muscles all braced, and
nerves all strung, for the battle of life. United prayer, then, serves
this purpose, and therefore is it valuable. But, again, united prayer
is useful inasmuch as God has promised extraordinary and
peculiar blessings in connection with it, “If two of you shall
agree on earth as touching anything that they shall ask, it shall be
done for them of my Father which is in heaven.” God asks
agreement, and, once the saints agree, he pledges himself that the
prayer of his agreeing ones shall be answered. Why, see what
accumulated force there is in prayer, when one after another pours
out his vehement desires; when many seem to be tugging at the
rope; when many seem to be knocking mercy’s gate; when the
mighty cries of many burning hearts come up to heaven. When, my
beloved, you go and shake the very gates thereof with the powerful
battering-ram of a holy vehemence, and a sacred importunity, then
is it that the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence. When first one,
and then another, and yet another, throws his whole soul into the
prayer, the kingdom of heaven is conquered and the victory
becomes great indeed. The prayer-meeting is an institution which
ought to be very precious to us, and to be cherished very much by
us as a Church, for to it we owe everything. When our
comparatively little chapel was all but empty, was it not a wellknown fact that the prayer-meeting was always full? And when the
Church increased, and the place was scarce large enough, it was
the prayer meeting that did it all.
III. What Are the Hindrances to the Prayer-meeting?
There are some hindrances before the people come. Unholiness
hinders prayer. A man cannot walk contrary to God, and then
expect to have his prayers heard. Discord always spoils prayer.
When believers do not agree, and are picking holes in each other’s
coats, they do not really love one another, and then their prayers
cannot succeed. Hypocrisy spoils prayer, for hypocrites will creep
in, you cannot help it. But there are some things which hinder the
prayer-meeting when we are at it. One is long prayers. It is
dreadful to hear a brother pray us into a good frame, and then, by
his long prayer, pray us out of it again. Long prayers spoil prayermeetings, for long prayers and true devotion in our public
assemblies seem pretty much to be divorced from one another.
Prayer-meetings are also hindered when those who get up to pray
do not pray, but preach a little sermon, and tell the Lord all about
themselves, though he knows their own better than they do, instead
of asking at once for what they want. Prayer-meetings are often
hindered by a want of directness, and by beating about the bush. I
did admire a prayer I heard last Monday night, in which a brother
said, “Lord, the orphanage wants £3,000; be pleased to send it.”
Prayer-meetings are sometimes hindered by a want of real
earnestness in those who pray, and in those who pray in silence. I
fear that much of our prayer is lost because we do not sufficiently
throw our hearts into it. But the prayer-meeting may also be
spoiled after we have been to it. “How say” say you. Why, by our
asking a blessing, and then not expecting to receive it. God
has promised that he will do to us according to our faith, but if our
faith is nothing, then the answer will also be nothing.
Inconsistency, too, in not practically carrying out your desires
will also spoil the prayer-meeting. If you ask God to convert souls,
but you will not do anything for those souls; if you ask God to save
your children, but you will not talk to them about their salvation; if
you ask God to save your neighbors, and you do not distribute
tracts amongst them, nor do anything else for them, are you not
altogether a hypocrite? You pray for what you do not put out your
hand to get. You pray for fruit, but you will not put out your hand to
pluck it, and all this spoils the prayer-meeting. Earnest prayer,
however, is always to be followed up by persevering efforts, and
then the result will be great indeed.
IV. What Should Be the Great Object of the Prayer-meeting,
And That for Which We Should Seek the Answer?
First, it must be the glory of God, or else the petition is not
sufficiently put up. Pray that King Jesus may have his own. Pray
that the crown-royal may be set upon that dear head, that once was
girt with thorns. Pray that the thrones of the heathen may totter
from their pedestals, and that Jesus may be acknowledged King of
Kings and Lord of Lords. And then, in subservience to that, let us
pray for a blessing on the Church. We ought to exercise a little of
our love for one another in praying for our fellow-members. Pray for
the minister, for he needs it most; his necessities in that direction
are the greatest, and therefore let him ever be remembered. Pray
for the church officers: pray for the workers in all organizations:
pray for the sufferers: prayer for the strong, for the weak, for the
rich, for the poor, for the trembling, for the sick, for the backsliding,
for the sinful. Yes, for every part of the one great body of Jesus let
our supplications perpetually ascend. Then we should also pray
for the conversion of the ungodly. Oh! this ought to be like a
burden on our hearts; this ought to be prayed out of the lowest
depths of a soul that is all aglow with sympathy for them. They are
dying; they are dying; they are dying without hope. It is of no use
my preaching to the people, my dear Christian brethren, unless you
pray for them. It may be that you who pray have more to do with
the blessed results than we who preach. He has given us his
pledge that he will answer: believe it, and you shall see it, and you
shall have the joy of it whilst His shall be the glory. Amen
++++++++++++++++++++
"Pray without ceasing"
1 Thess. 5:17
(From Works of Ezekiel Hopkins, 1874, Vol. 3, pp 579-581)
1.
That may be said to be done without ceasing, which is done
constantly, and at set times and seasons. So we have the word
used, Gen. 8:22: "'While the earth remaineth, seedtime and
harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter. and day and
night, shall not cease:" that is, they shall not cease, in their courses
and appointed times. So, here, "Pray without ceasing:" that is,
observe a constant course of prayer, at fixed and appointed times;
still keeping yourselves from any superstitious observations. And,
thus, Exod. 29:42: the daily sacrifice is called "a continual burntoffering;" and yet it was offered up only every morning and every
evening, and yet God accounts it a continual offering. So here
"Pray" continually, or "without ceasing:" that is, keep up frequent
and appointed times for prayer, without intermission.
2.
To pray without ceasing, is to pray with all importunity and
vehemence. So, in Acts 12:5, "the Church" is said to pray for Peter
"without ceasing;" that is, they were very earnest and importunate,
and would give God no rest until he heard them. So, also, in the
parable of the unjust steward, which our Saviour spake on purpose
to show how prevalent with God importunity is, Luke 18:1, it is
said, that the Lord would teach them that they "ought always to
pray:'' that is, that they ought to pray earnestly and importunity is
not giving over till they were heard. So, also, I Sam. 7:7,8, the
children of Israel entreated Samuel not to cease crying to the Lord
for them: that is, that he would improve all his interest at the throne
of grace to the utmost in their behalfs. So we are bid to "pray
without ceasing:" that is, to be earnest and vehement, resolving to
take no denial at the hands of God. But yet we must do other duties
also, though we are vehement in this. We may learn how to
demean ourselves in this case towards God, by beggars who
betimes come to your doors and bring their work along with them:
they beg importunately, and yet they work betwixt whiles: so also
should we do: we should beg as importunately of God, as if we
depended merely upon his charity; and yet, betwixt whiles, we
should work as industriously as if we were ourselves to get our
livings with our own hands.
3.
To ''pray without ceasing,'' is to improve all occasions, at every turn,
to be darting up our souls unto God in holy meditations and
ejaculations. And this we may and ought to do, when we hear or
read the word, or in whatever duty of religion we are engaged: yea,
this we may and ought to do, in our worldly employments. If your
hearts and affections be heavenly, your thoughts will force out a
passage, through the crowd and tumult of worldly businesses, to
Heaven Ejaculations which are swift messengers, which require not
much time to perform their errands in. For there is a holy mystery in
pointing our earthly employments with these heavenly ejaculations,
as men point their writings sometimes with stops [periods]; even
now and them shooting up a short mental prayer unto heaven: such
pauses as these are, you will find to be no impediments to your
worldly affairs. This is the way for a Christian to be retired and
private, in the midst of a multitude; to turn his shop or his field into a
closet; to trade for earth, and yet to get heaven also into the
bargain. So we read of Nehemiah 2:4, that, while the king was
discoursing to him on the state of Judea, Nehemiah prayed unto
God: that is, he sent up secret prayers to God, which, though they
escaped the king's notice and observation, yet were so prevalent as
to bow and incline his heart.
4.
There is yet something more in this praying ''without ceasing." And
that is this: we may then be said to "pray without ceasing" when we
keep our hearts in such a frame, as that we are fit at all times to
pour out our souls before God in prayer. When we keep alive and
cherish a praying spirit; and can, upon all opportunities, draw near
to God, with full souls and with lively and vigorous affections: this is
to "pray without ceasing." And this I take to be the most genuine,
natural sense of the words, and the true scope of the Apostle here;
to have the habit of prayer, inclining them always freely and sweetly
to breathe out their requests unto God, and to take all occasions to
prostrate themselves before his throne of grace.
Prayer worth calling prayer, prayer that God will call true prayer and
will treat as true prayer, takes for more time by the clock than one
man in a thousand thinks. Alexander Whyte
God moves in a mysterious way
His wonders to perform;
He plants His footsteps in the sea,
And rides upon the storm.
.
Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take;
The clouds ye so much dread
Are filled with mercies, and shall break
In blessings ’round thy head.
++++++++++++++++++++
“Behold he is praying”
Lessons from the conversion of Paul Acts 9:1-25
Acts 9:11 “And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the street
which is called Straight, and enquire in the house of Judas for one
called Saul, of Tarsus: for, behold, he is praying,” The Greek
says “praying for himself,” he wasn’t depending on someone else to
do his praying. “God has no stillborn children; as soon as any are
quickened by his grace, they cry unto him; prayer is the breath of a
regenerate man, and shows him to be alive. He who before was
breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of
Christ, now breathes after communion with Christ and them.” Our
Lord said “Behold” a new Christian praying.
Prayer is the initial experience in salvation. v 5
Note that- the first thing Paul does is acknowledge the Lordship of
Jesus Christ. This initial experience was initiated by God Himself.
In v 4 the Lord begins this dialogue.
Prayer is instinctive to the Christian. v 5
Without thinking, Paul responded in prayer and in submission. We
should have the habit of praying without hesitation or question. We
just do it. Pray and Obey.
Prayer is natural to the Christian experience.
v5
Paul needed no lessons, no practice, no prayer book. The main
way we can help one another in prayer is to set the example of a
praying life and to exhort one another to do the same.
Prayer is dialogue. v 5
Three times the Lord speaks to Paul and he answers twice. Three
times the Lord speaks to Ananias and he answers twice. We need
silence and mediation in our prayer time. We need a still heart to
know God’s presence.
Prayer is accompanied with obedience.
v 8 & 18
Prayer is obedience and requires obedience. The genuine
Christian’s nature is to pray obey. Note, that Paul first went to
Damascus (v 8) and second was baptized (v 18) both are acts of
obedience. If we are not praying, we are not obedient and if we are
not obedient, then our praying will be in vain.
Prayer’s answer involves waiting, isolation, and fasting. v 9
The most effective praying is done in secret, where we are cut off
from the world. Paul was 3 days sightless–sometimes effective
praying involves loosing sight of the world and its interest. Out of
our secret prayer life we can expect the presence of God in our
cooperate prayer life and the power of God to be manifest in our
service.
Prayer is how we know God’s Will. v 10-15
Ananias was a man in communion with God and God initiated the
dialogue and the action. As we pray we learn the will of God.
Prayer is no contradiction to election and sovereignty. v 15
Prayer is God’s decreed means to accomplish His purposes. Paul
was chosen but Ananias still went. So must we go and preach the
Gospel because God has a plan, and that includes our praying.
Prayer results in being filled with the Holy Spirit. v 17
Both obedience and prayer are necessary to “being filled with the
Spirit” which is something God does to us. We do not fill ourselves.
God fills us as we pray and abide in Him.
Prayer is a means to produce change. v 21
In our natural state we do not pray; therefore prayer is a change
that produces change. Isn’t that why we pray? Cp verse 1 with
verses 19-21. Paul changed from threats and murder to preaching
“Jesus is the Christ.”
Prayer produces growth & effectiveness. v 22
Because it gives exposure to the source of life. Cp Jn 15:1-5
Prayer and the filling of the Holy Spirit produce results.
The answer was on the way while Paul was praying, v 11. As we
pray God may have the answer on the way.
In the prayer meeting, as nowhere else, are Christian graces thus
brought together with powerful reactionary and reflective forces.
The Prayer Meeting and Its History, J. B. Johnston
Faith, mighty faith the promise sees,
And Looks to God alone;
Laughs at impossibilities,
And cries, It shall be done!
C. Wesley
++++++++++++++++++++
Exceeding Abundant Encouragement to
Prayer
Eph 3:14 For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father, 15 from
whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, 16 that he
would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, that ye may be
strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inward man; 17
that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; to the end that
ye, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may be strong to
apprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and
height and depth,19 and to know the love of Christ which passeth
knowledge, that ye may be filled unto all the fulness of God. 20
Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that
we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, 21 unto
him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus unto all
generations for ever and ever. Amen.
Do you ever get discouraged in praying? Do you ever have an
inner desire to pray fervently and victorously but just can’t get over
being discouraged? The Bible is abundant with texts and
testimonies to encourage us in prayer. It is probably true that, if we
are discouraged from praying it is because we are not reading our
Bibles.
This portion of Scripture is a great remedy for discouragement.
Notice first what Paul is praying for:
that we may be strengthened in the inner man,
that Christ may dwell in our hearts,
that we be rooted and grounded in love,
that we may know the love of Christ,
that we may be filled unto the fulness of God.
All these things are aspects of Christian character. If our character
and our relationship to God are what they ought to be all else will
be as it should be.
Paul recaps what he is praying for by giving his praying and us over
to God, “Now unto him.” He recognizes that God is all-powerful.
God is necessarily all-powerful (or omnipotent). He would not be
God if He did not possess all and unlimited power. Paul is
reminding God that He is able to do what he is asking, and
encouraging himself and us at the same time. God’s power
reaches to all things: past, present, and future; good and bad; in
His will or out of His will; directly from Him or through deligated
powers. The only thing that God cannot do, are things contrary to
his nature and inconsistent with his will. “He cannot deny Himself.”
2 Tim 2:13
Paul encourages us to expect answers to our praying by saying
that God “is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask
or think.” If He can do above what we ask of think then certainly He
can do what we ask or think. Sometimes He answers before we
ask and other times it is after much asking. Sometimes it is what we
can understand to be for our good and His glory and other times it
is something we can’t imagine that can be for any good or any glory
to Him. God is in total control.
This gives us great encouragement to go to God, and ask such
things of Him as we want, and He has provided. Heb 4:16 says
“Let us therefore draw near with boldness (free speaking) unto the
throne of grace, “
All this He does as He develops Christian character in us
“according to the power that works in us.” God has worked
powerfully to deliver us from the wrath of His infinite justice and He
is accordingly working in us now to make us what we ought to be
and useful for His glory.
The conclusion of the apostle's prayer, in which the power of God is
celebrated, is “unto him be the glory in the church and in Christ
Jesus unto all generations for ever and ever. Amen.”
Thou art coming to a King; Large petitions with thee bring.
The Lord Has Heard and Answered Prayer
The Lord has heard and answered prayer
and saved his people in distress;
this to the coming age declare,
that they his holy name may bless.
The Lord, exalted on his throne,
looked down from heav’n with pitying eye
to still the lowly captive’s moan
and save his people doomed to die.
All men in Zion shall declare
his gracious name with one accord,
when kings and nations gather there
to serve and worship God the Lord
The earth and heav’ns shall pass away,
like vesture worn and laid aside,
but changeless you shall live alway,
your years forever shall abide.
You, O Jehovah, shall endure,
your throne forever is the same;
and to all generations sure
shall be your great memorial name.
Psalm 102:17-27 The Psalter, 1912; alt. 1990 mod.
Tune 1973 from the Oxford Books of Carols by permission of
Oxford University Pess
++++++++++++++++++++
Bold Praying
Let’s do a word study. The Greek word parresia means “outspokenness,
frankness, plainness of speech that conceals nothing” (Arndt & Gingrich,
Lexicon of NT); “freedom in speaking without concealment, ambiguity, or
circumlocution” (Thayer); “the speaking all one thinks, free-spokenness,
as characteristic of a frank and fearless mind” (Critical Lexicon &
Concordance) To sum up these definitions “boldness,” parresia, is, saying
all that one thinks, in clear terms, not hiding anything or running in circles
with our words, or more simply “unreserved & direct speaking.”
Bold or “unreserved & direct speaking” in our praying is necessary for
effectual praying. Following are four occurrences of this word in the N.T.
which encourage us in praying.
Bold Praying with Access and Confidence
Eph 3:12 “In whom we have boldness (parrhesia) and access with
confidence by the faith of him.” Note the association with “access” and
“confidence.” Access is the right or opportunity to get to someone.
Confidence is trust in knowing that we can exercise our access and be
accepted and not rejected. This access is with boldness, or “unreserved &
direct speaking.” We can and should use the access that we have to God
to say what ever we want to say. We should have a holy courage or
confidence and trust that God will accept and hear us. We have no
reason to have fear or a spirit of bondage.
Bold Praying for Mercy & Grace
Heb 4:14-16 “Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is
passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our
profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with
the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are,
yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly (parrhesia) unto the throne
of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of
need.” How can a defiled and sinful person approach God? He must first
cleanse and qualify himself, but this he can not do to the satisfaction of an
infinitely holy and vengeful God. The work of qualifying us must be done
for us. There are two things that this text says we get by boldly coming:
1. Mercy, which is not getting what we deserve, that is eternal judgment
and 2. Grace, which is getting what we no not deserve, that is, all “the
exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ
Jesus.” Eph 2:7
Bold Praying by the Blood of Jesus
Heb 10:19 “Having therefore, brethren, boldness (parrhesia) to enter
into the holiest by the blood of Jesus,” The blood of Jesus has cleansed
us of all defilements so there is nothing to hinder us. If our coming to God
depended on our own worthiness we would have great reason to fear. We
have liberty granted to us by God on the basis of what our substitute has
accomplished for us. To be timid in our approach to God would say that
we don’t trust what has been done for us or that what has been done is
maybe not sufficient. What a great compliment and glory it is to God for
us to take Him at His word and come with “unreserved & direct
speaking.”
Bold Praying’s condition
1 Jn 3:21,22 “Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we
confidence (parrhesia) toward God. And whatsoever we ask, we receive
of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that
are pleasing in his sight.” also 5:14 “And this is the confidence
(parrhesia) that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his
will, he heareth us:” Jesus laid the foundation for this in Jn 15:7 “If ye
abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it
shall be done unto you.” This is always the secret to answered prayer,
even in the case of Jesus Himself. This abiding relationship is the
assumed condition of all answers to prayer. So, what should be our
responsibility in relation to prayer being answered? Simply this, “to abide
in Him.” We are to be in constant obedience and fellowship and we can
claim the promise “ask anything in my name, I will do it.” Jn 14:14
All four of these passages are in the Present tense, which is saying that
we are to be continually having this boldness or “unreserved & direct
speaking.” This is something that should be natural and normal to us
which God would have us to experience on a continual basis. . My dear
fellow-prayer “Let us have boldness with our great God.”
The Spirit imparts a sense of sonship and acceptance that creates
freedom and confidence in the presence of God.
Behold the Throne of Grace!
Behold the throne of grace!
The promise calls me near:
There Jesus shows a smiling face,
And waits to answer prayer.
That rich atoning blood,
Which sprinkled round I see,
Provides for those who come to God,
An all-prevailing plea.
My soul, ask what thou wilt;
Thou cants not be too bold:
Since his own blood for thee he spilt,
What else can he withhold?
++++++++++++++++++++
What wond’rous grace! who knows its full extent?
A creature, dust and ashes, speaks with God-Tells all his woes, enumerates his wants,
Yea, pleads with Deity, and gains relief.
’Tis prayer, yes, ’tis ‘effectual, fervent prayer,’
Puts dignity on worms, proves life divine,
Makes demons tremble, breaks the darkest cloud,
And with a princely power prevails with God!
And shall this privilege become a task?
My God, forbid! Pour out thy Spirit's grace,
Draw me by love, and teach me how to pray.
Yea, let Thy holy unction from above
Beget, extend, maintain my intercourse
with Father, Son, and Spirit, Israel’s God,
Until petitions are exchanged for praise
Irons.
++++++++++++++++++++
Mary’s Example in Prayer
The mother of Jesus exemplifies true praying. In Jn 2:1-11 we have the
story of Jesus turning the water into wine. It begins ”And the third day
there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was
there: And both Jesus was called, and his disciples, to the marriage.
And when they wanted wine----” Now let’s see how Mary reacts to this
situation.
1. “And when they wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith unto
him” She goes to the right place with the need. Jn 6:68 “Then Simon
Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of
eternal life.”
2. “They have no wine” She was assuming someone else’s problem-she was being an intercessor. To pray for ourselves (i.e. our family and
friends) only, is selfish and forsakes the responsibility we have in prayer.
3. “They have no wine” She states the problem. Prayer is simply telling
it to Jesus and leaving it in His care and timing. 1 Pe 5:7 “Casting all
your care upon him; for he careth for you.”
4. “Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I to do with thee? mine
hour is not yet come.” Mary is rebuffed. Sometimes we are rebuffed
when God doesn’t quickly answer our prayer. This is “trusting time.”
5. “His mother saith unto the servants, Whatsoever he saith unto
you, do it.” She had done enough. She did not try to influence or help
Him or even express concern. Jesus knew the problem and that was
enough.
6. “Whatsoever he saith unto you, do it.” She did not concern herself
with the means that Jesus might use. She is in submission to what ever
Jesus does and in whatever way He does it. If we give God great liberty
to work He will do great things in great ways.
7. “And there were set there six waterpots of stone, after the
manner of the purifying of the Jews, containing two or three firkins
apiece.” Jesus worked in the existing circumstances by using the six
water pots. God can bless us right where we are and with what we have.
Obedience where we are is our responsibility.
8. “Jesus saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water.” Jesus gave
a simple and what seemed to be an unrelated command. Remember
Naaman in 2 Ki 5:11 who said, “Behold, I thought, He will surely come
out to me, and stand, and call on the name of the LORD his God, and
strike his hand over the place, and recover the leper.” He was upset with
God’s means but when he obeyed he was healed. Obedience is better
than sacrifice.
9. “And they filled them up to the brim.” They obeyed as much as
possible, “to the brim.” In 2 Ki 13:18,19 the prophet told the king to smite
the ground, he smote only three time and the prophet rebuked him. We
need to obey to the degree we want God to bless.
10. “And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the
governor of the feast. And they bare it.” Obedience is consistently
required. Trust even when there’s risk of embarrassment and failure.
11. “When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water that was made
wine, and knew not whence it was:” God normally works behind the
scenes and with people that are not significant to the people of this world.
Here it is the servants, the least esteemed, that God uses. Are we willing
to be such to be used of God?
12. “But the servants which drew the water knew” “Henceforth I call
you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I
have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I
have made known unto you.” Jon 15:15
13. “The governor of the feast called the bridegroom, And saith unto
him, Every man at the beginning doth set forth good wine; and when
men have well drunk, then that which is worse: but thou hast kept
the good wine until now.” We never get the best until Jesus comes and
becomes our Savior and Supplier. If we are feeling rebuffed and still
waiting on God’s blessing, cheer up, “it will be worth it all when we see
Jesus.” 1 Co 2:9 “But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard,
neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath
prepared for them that love him.” The good wine will come last and it
must come from Jesus because of what He did for us.
14. “This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and
manifested forth his glory.” Rom 11:36 “For of him, and through him,
and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen.”
15. “and his disciples believed on him.” Seeing God work, glorify His
name and meet needs always increases the faith of His people and
glorifies God.
Let us pray that Jesus will come into our lives and work for His glory and
our good.
You can do more than pray, after you have prayed, but you cannot do
more than pray until you have prayed. John Bunyan
Oh, closer every day;
Let me lean harder on Thee, Jesus,
Yes, harder all the way.
++++++++++++++++++++
Our Continual Responsibility to Pray
The Greek word proskartereo makes an interesting and helpful study on
prayer. The dictionary gives great breadth in its meaning: “to be
steadfastly attentive unto, to give unremitting care to a thing, to persevere
and not to faint, to show one's self courageous for, to be in constant
readiness for one, wait on constantly.” We put this together as: “To be
steadfastly attentive to with constant readiness and unremitting care
that one might persevere and show oneself courageous.” Five of the
ten occurrences of this word are used in exhortations to pray. Nothing
else has this degree of emphases. Not: giving of money, attending
church, showing of hospitality, exercise of gifts, doctrine, or preaching.
All five occurrences are in a continuous action tense, emphasizing the
continual responsibility we have to prayer.
1. Ac 1:14 “All these continued together in prayer with one mind,
together with the women, along with Mary the mother of Jesus, and his
brothers.” The first occurrence of our word is pre-pentecost and in
preparation of pentecost. This is referring to corporate prayer. They
continued “to be steadfastly attentive to prayer with constant readiness
and unremitting care, persevering and showing themselves courageous”
and the promised blessing of pentecost came in power and glorifying of
God in Christ Jesus. The historical context was the beginning of an
entirely new program in God’s eternal plan. Nothing could be more
appropriate than this kind of prayer at this point.
2. Ac 2:42 “They were devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching
and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.” After pentecost
the believers continued “to be steadfastly attentive to with constant
readiness and unremitting care, persevering and showing themselves
courageous” in corporate prayer and the blessings continued to come.
Sometimes we long for our churches to have the zeal and power that the
church in Acts had. It seems obvious that Acts 2:42 contains the secret
to their usefulness for God. Why and for how long will we continue in our
own powerless ways?
3. Ac 6:4 “But we will devote ourselves to prayer and the ministry of
the word.” The leaders of the new born church took the necessary
precaution “to be steadfastly attentive to pray with constant readiness
and unremitting care, persevering and showing themselves courageous.”
As they began to lead the church they understood the necessity of prayer.
Prayer was so important to them that they delegated other necessary
duties to others, so they could have sufficient time for prayer. What a
change we would see in our churches if its leaders would protect their
responsibility to pray. Most of our churches are run in the energy of the
flesh and not in the power of the Spirit.
4. Rom 12:9-13 “Love must be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil,
cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another with mutual love,
showing eagerness in honoring one another. Do not lag in zeal, be
enthusiastic in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, endure in suffering,
persist in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints, pursue
hospitality.” Paul is exhorting us to not be hypocritical, but sincere in
expressing our love. When he says “ persist in prayer,” he is telling us to
“to be steadfastly attentive to prayer with constant readiness and
unremitting care, persevering and showing ourselves courageous in
prayer.” The context suggests that this praying is “intercessory prayer” i
an exercise of our love. Love is the identifying characteristic of the
children of God, “Everyone will know by this that you are my disciples—if
you have love for one another.” Jn 13:35 It is impossible for one to love
God if he does not love his fellow Christian. 1 Jn 4:20 “If anyone says ‘I
love God’ and yet hates his fellow Christian, he is a liar, because the one
who does not love his fellow Christian whom he has seen cannot love
God whom he has not seen.” We must love and pray for our brothers and
sisters in our Lord.
5. Col 4:2-5 “Be devoted to prayer, keeping alert in it with thanksgiving.
At the same time pray for us too, that God may open a door for the
message so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in
chains. Pray that I may make it known as I should.” He adds emphasis
by saying that we should “keep alert in prayer with thanksgiving” He also
gets personal with the saints at Colosse when he asks them to intercede
for him that they might have opportunity to “proclaim the mystery of
Christ.” Paul is making thanksgiving and intercession integral parts of the
kind of prayer we are to be devoted to, that is, “to be steadfast, attentive
to with constant readiness and unremitting care, persevering and showing
ourselves courageous.” We certainly have much to be thankful for, this in
itself is sufficient to make our praying full and lively. Then again, Paul is
the missionary and the Colosse Christians are to support him in
intercessory prayer. Most of us know someone who is either on the
mission field or in the ministry of a church that we could pray for. There
are three ways to fulfill the great commission “go and make disciples of
all nations,” Ma 28:19: 1. In person as Paul did. 2. In financial support
as the Philippians did Ph 4:15, 3. In prayer as the Colosse Christians
are exhorted to do.
Four of the above five occurrences are dealing with corporate prayer and
the fifth (Ac 6:4) is dealing with prayer in the leadership of the Church.
The basic lesson is that prayer should get its proper emphasis in our
churches. Without it there is no hope for the presence and power of God.
A church is never more like the New Testament church than when it is
praying.
A congregation without a prayer meeting is essentially defective in its
organization, and so must be limited in its efficiency. The Prayer
Meeting and Its History, J. B. Johnston
It is not enough to begin to pray, nor to pray aright; nor is it enough to
continue for a time to pray; but we must pray patiently, believing, continue
in prayer until we obtain an answer. George Mueller
Prayer is indeed a continuous violent action of the spirit as it is lifted up to
God. This is comparable to that of a ship going against the stream.
Luther
++++++++++++++++++++
Paul’s Prayer for the Colosse Christians
“For this reason we also, from the day we heard,
have not ceased praying for you and” Col 1:9-12
I. The Object of Paul’s prayer.
“asking God to fill you with the knowledge” Paul is praying for a
completion and perfecting of that which God has begun in them.
“To fill” is to carry into effect, bring to realization. Knowledge here
is “a knowledge grounded on personal experience “ Paul want us to
come into complete realization of our personal experience of God.
“of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding,” Paul is
praying that we might have personal experience in “spiritual
understanding” of the mysteries of grace. God gives us
understanding in “things angels long to catch a glimpse of.” 1 Pet
1:12
II. The Purpose of Paul’s prayer involves two things.
1. Our Character “so that you may live worthily of the Lord” “I,
therefore, the prisoner for the Lord, urge you to live worthily of the
calling with which you have been called,” Eph 4:1 “to walk by faith
in him;” 2 Cor 5:7, “to walk after his Spirit,” Gal 5:16, and according
to His word, to have a way of life as becomes his Gospel, Phil 1:27,
and worthy of that calling wherewith the saints are called by grace
to the obtaining of his kingdom and glory. 1 Thes 2:12
2. His pleasure “and please him in all respects” In ourselves we can
do nothing to please God, but because of Christ redeeming work
for us, we have faith and love toward God that makes our works
acceptable.
III. The Answer of Paul’s prayer.
Note four phrases that describe the action of knowing God’s
will.“bearing fruit in every good deed,” children of God are trees that
bear righteousness, they are a planting of the Lord and under the
influence of divine grace they bring forth the fruits of righteousness.
“growing in the knowledge of God,” When a Christian becomes full
of knowledge, his capacity grows so there is room for more
knowledge of God’s person and will. The cycle continues and will
continue into eternity. “being strengthened with all power according
to his glorious might” Believers are weak in themselves, and
insufficient to do or bear anything of themselves, but stand in need
of strength from above, proportionate to the various kinds of
services, temptations, and trials they are called unto. All power
belongs to God, it is a perfection of his nature, and has been, and is
gloriously displayed in many things; as in the creation of the
heavens and the earth; in the upholding of all things in their being.
“for the display of all patience” To bear patiently all afflictions and
tribulations and wait patiently for the things promised by God, “to
live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, as
we wait for the happy fulfillment of our hope in the glorious
appearing” Tit 2:13 “and steadfastness,” to be slow to anger, and
not easily provoked to wrath; to be ready to forgive injuries; and to
bear long, and with patience, all reproaches and persecutions for
the sake of Christ, and his Gospel; “with joy” with a cheerful spirit,
or with joy in the Holy Ghost; to esteem reproach for Christ's sake
above the riches and honors of this world; to rejoice when counted
worthy to suffer shame for his name. “giving thanks to the Father”
As Paul prays for us to be thankful for all things, so should we pray
for ourselves and for one another, that we should be humble and
full of gratitude toward God.
How does the contents of this prayer compare with the contents of
our prayers. Our Spiritual needs are more important than our
physical. We should be praying for ourselves and for one another
that we might be full of experiential knowledge of God’s will in a
spiritually wise and understanding way so that we may walk
worthily of our Lord and please Him in all things as we bear the fruit
of good deeds, ever growing in knowing Him, manifesting patience,
steadfastness, and joy.
I asked the Lord that I might grow
In faith, and love, and every grace;
Might more of his salvation know,
And seek more earnestly his face.
I thought that in some favoured hour
At once he’d answer my request;
And, by his love’s constraining power,
Subdue my sins and give me rest.
Instead of this, he made me feel
The hidden evils of my heart,
And let the angry power of hell
Assault my soul in every part.
“Lord, why is this?” I trembling cried.
“Wilt thou pursue thy worm to death?”
“Tis in this way,” the Lord replied,
“I answer prayer for grace and faith.”
“These inward trails I employ
From self and pride to set thee free,
And break thy schemes of earthly joy,
That thou may’st seek thy all in me!”
++++++++++++++++++++
Paul’s Requests for Prayer
Our Lord said in Mat12:34-37 “You brood of vipers! How can you
speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the
heart the mouth speaks. The good person out of his good treasure
brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings
forth evil. I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account
for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be
justified, and by your words you will be condemned.” There is a
definite correlation between what one thinks or the desires in His
heart and what he talks about. This applies to one’s praying. We
pray for, and ask others to pray for, what we hold dear in our
hearts. If we are praying for health and wealth, then that reveals
what is dear to us. The requests given out in our prayer meetings
reveals what we are most concerned about. Some prayer meetings
have been nicked named “an organ recital” because there are so
many requests for hearts, kidneys, livers, gall bladders, etc. The
first two requests the Lord taught us (Luke 11:1) to include in our
prayers are “Father, hallowed be your name.” the honor and glory
of God; and “Your kingdom come,” the success of God’s program
in this world. After this we are told to pray “Give us each day our
daily bread, and forgive us our sins...” It is helpful to review the
prayer request that Paul had. Notice what he requested each of
the following churches to pray.
1. The Romans--for His Service. Rom 15:30,32 “I appeal to you,
brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to
strive together with me in your prayers to God on my behalf, that I
may be delivered from the unbelievers in Judea, and that my
service for Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints, so that by
God's will I may come to you with joy and be refreshed in your
company.”
2. The Thessalonians--that God’s Word Might Prosper. 2 Thess
3:1-3 “Finally, brothers, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may
speed ahead and be honored, as happened among you, and that
we may be delivered from wicked and evil men. For not all have
faith. But the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you
against the evil one.”
3. The Thessalonians--for Deliverance. 2 Thess 3:1-3 “Finally,
brothers, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may speed ahead
and be honored, as happened among you, and that we may be
delivered from wicked and evil men. For not all have faith. But the
Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil
one.”
4. The Hebrews--for the Brethren. Heb 13:18,19 “Pray for us, for
we are sure that we have a clear conscience, desiring to act
honorably in all things. I urge you the more earnestly to do this in
order that I may be restored to you the sooner.”
5. The Corinthians--for their Gifts to Him. 2 Cor 1:11 “You also
must help us by prayer, so that many will give thanks on our behalf
for the blessing granted us through the prayers of many.”
6. The Ephesians--for His Preaching. Eph 6:18-20 “praying at all
times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep
alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints,
and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my
mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, for which I am
an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to
speak.”
7. The Colossians--for an Open Door. Col 4:3,4 “Continue
steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. At the
same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the
word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in
prison—that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.”
Prayer 89 Bible
Outline Studies, Basil Miller, p 54
The above prayer request could be an outline for our praying,
personally of corporately. May we accept Paul’s request as if
our own leaders and friends were making it.
++++++++++++++++++++
Paul’s Prayers for Others
Intercessory prayer is the responsibility of all Christians and
especially of Christian leaders. If one is sincere about wanting to
help people to have a better relationship with God, he will pray for
them. Genuine Christian love will cause one to pray for the one
loved. Godly leaders will follow the example of our Lord and pray
for the sheep. God has given us good example in Paul of how to
pray for others. Paul prayed for:
1. The Romans - to come them. Rom 1:8-19 "First, I thank my God
through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of
throughout the whole world. For God is my witness, whom I serve
with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I make
mention of you always in my prayers; Making request, if by any
means now at length I might have a prosperous journey by the will
of God to come unto you." We are to pray for others with
thankfulness conditioned on the will God. We should pray for others
that we have never met, thanking God for what he has done in and
with their lives. We should be consistent in praying for others, this
shows true concern for them. We should pray that we might be able
to make a contribution to their lives as God wills and for His glory.
2. The Thessalonians - to see them. 1 Thes 3:10-12 "Night and
day praying exceedingly that we might see your face, and might
perfect that which is lacking in your faith? Now God himself and our
Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, direct our way unto you. And the
Lord make you to increase and abound in love one toward another,
and toward all men, even as we do toward you." We are to pray
much "Night and day." We are to pray for God to direct us so that
we might have the opportunity to help others in areas that lack and
that they may abound in love for others.
3. Israel - that they might be saved. Rom 10:1-5 "Brethren, my
heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be
saved." We are to pray for the salvation of others, even for those
who have rejected the truth and the Savior. Even though they have
persecuted us and fought against God, we are still to pray for them.
4. The Corinthians - that they might be pure. 2 Cor 13:7 "Now I
pray to God that ye do no evil; not that we should appear approved,
but that ye should do that which is honest, though we be as
reprobates." We are to pray for the "holiness" of others in relation to
God and for their "honesty" in relation to others without regard for
our reputation.
5. The Ephesians - that they might have wisdom. Eph 1:16-19
"Cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my
prayers; That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory,
may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the
knowledge of him: The eyes of your understanding being
enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and
what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, And
what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who
believe, according to the working of his mighty power." We are not
to stop praying for our friends in Christ that they will be intelligent
and knowledgeable about who God is and what God wants them to
do, and what they have in Christ and how powerful God is.
6. The Phillipians - that they might abound in love. Phil 1:9-11
"And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in
knowledge and in all judgment; That ye may approve things that
are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offence till the
day of Christ; Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are
by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God." We are to pray
for others that they may increase in knowing God and in the ability
to apply truth to everyday life without being offensive, and have the
righteousness of Christ.
7. The Colossians - to know God’’s will. Col 1:9-11 "For this cause
we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you,
and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in
all wisdom and spiritual understanding; That ye might walk worthy
of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and
increasing in the knowledge of God; Strengthened with all might,
according to his glorious power, unto all patience and long suffering
with joyfulness." We are to continually pray for others to completely
know God’’s will and live in a way that would honor our Lord in
good works, ever increasing in knowledge of God strong in joyous
patience and long suffering.Prayer 89 Bible Outline Studies, Basil
Miller p 55
Our praying for our spiritual brothers and sisters should be guided
by the Holy Spirit, conditioned on the will of God, and for the Glory
of Christ Jesus. It should be focused on the advancement of the
Kingdom of God not on our pleasures and comforts.
--------------------------------------------------------Intercession is the noblest work God entrusts to us humans. T.W.
Hunt
The power of the Church truly to bless rests on intercession--asking
and receiving heavenly gifts to carry to men. of prayer, men mighty
in prayer. Power Through Prayer, E. M. Bounds
In the fine and difficult art of prayer, intercession is undoubtedly the
most difficult of accomplishment. As far as my understanding of
these things goes, intercessory prayer is the finest and most
exacting kind of work that it is possible for men to perform. Prayer,
O. Hallesby, p 164
++++++++++++++++++++
Steadfast Devotion to Prayer
The Greek word for “steadfast devotion” is proskartereo, 6 of the
10 occurrences have to do with prayer, it means to be steadfastly
devoted to, to give unremittingly to, to persevere and not to faint in,
to be in constant readiness for.
Acts 1:14 “All these continued with one accord in prayer and
supplication, with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus,
and with his brethren.” Jesus’ last instruction to the disciples
was “not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of
the Father...you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days
from now.” Ac 1:5 We can’t be sure of what they understood “
baptized with” to mean but obviously they were willing for it. Jesus
further entices them with “you will receive power when the Holy
Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in
Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the
earth.” 1:8 I suspect that the last phrase “to the end of the earth”
just blew their minds, but it didn’t seem to scare them. After Jesus
was taken up from them into Heaven they quickly obeyed. They
returned to Jerusalem and went to the upper room and our text
describes what they did. They continued or they were steadfastly
devoting themselves to prayer, they gave themselves unremittingly
to prayer, they persevered and did not faint in their prayer, they
were in constant readiness for prayer. Acts 2 recorded the
unsurpassed events that resulted. The lesson is clear, if we give
prayer its proper place, God will bless beyond our comprehension.
“Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we
ask or think, according to the power at work within us,” Eph 3:20
Acts 2:42 “And they devoted themselves to the apostles'
teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and the
prayers.” Verse 41 ends with “and there were added that day
about three thousand souls.” This mighty work of God compelled
these early Christians to continue or to be steadfastly devoted to
prayer, to give themselves unremittingly to prayer, to persevere and
not to faint in prayer, to be in constant readiness for prayer, as they
had before this in 1:14. The result of their faithfulness to persist in
doing what was right is recorded in v 43 “And fear came upon
every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the
apostles.” It is both simple and mysterious. Nothing complicated
about giving ourselves to prayer, but mysterious when we realize
we don’t do it. It is obvious that they, plural, corporately gave
themselves to the teaching, the fellowship, the breaking of bread,
and the prayers. All four items have the definite article making it a
matter of specific identity. If the first three are corporate, then the
fourth is also. They were praying in “the prayer meetings” with
steadfast devotion.
Ac 6:4 “But we will devote ourselves to prayer, and to the
ministry of the word.” Now things have grown to the point that
problems have appeared and some needs of the people are not
being properly met. Priorities have to be identified and
responsibilities have to be delegated. The apostles determined that
their first priority would be to “give ourselves continually to prayer”
that is, to steadfastly devote themselves to prayer, to give
themselves unremittingly to prayer, to persevere and not to faint in
prayer, to be in constant readiness for prayer, “and to the ministry
of the word.” This they are doing together, corporately. We see
proof of this in the plural “ourselves” and the fact that “ministry of
the word” is a corporate ministry. They were not satisfied in each
one having his secret time of prayer. They were serious and
corporately laid hold of God in prevailing prayer.
Rom 12:12 “Rejoicing in hope; be patient in tribulation, be
constant in prayer.” The glory days of Pentecost are in the past,
now it is tribulation times and the exhortation is to be steadfastly
devoted to prayer, to give unremitting to prayer, to persevere and
not to faint in prayer, to be in constant readiness for prayer, Note
the flow of the context, v 1 “I appeal to you...brothers...” v 3 “I say
to everyone among you...” v. 4 “as in one body we have many
members,” v 5 “though many, are one body in Christ” v 10 “love
one another with brotherly affection” v 12 “...be constant in
prayer” v 13 “contribute” to the needs of the saints” v 16 “Live in
harmony with one another” v 18 “...live peaceably with all men.”
The entire context is speaking to the Roman Christians as a
corporate body. The exhortation to be steadfastly devoted to
prayer, to give unremittingly to prayer, to persevere and not to faint
in prayer, to be in constant readiness for prayer is given to the
corporate body of believers. We as a body of believers are to be
rejoicing in hope, being patient in tribulation, and continue in prayer.
Eph 6:18 “Praying always at all times and in the Spirit, with all
prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all
perseverance, making supplication for all the saints.” Paul is
discussing the armor of God with which we should equip ourselves.
After he names all the equipment, climaxing with “the sword of the
Spirit, which is the Word of God,” he brings it altogether by saying
“pray.” That is, we are to be praying always at all times, we are not
to cease and there is no inappropriate time to pray. Prayer must be
in the Spirit and watch with a steadfast devotion to prayer, giving
ourselves unremittingly to prayer, that we might persevere and not
to faint in prayer, being constant readiness for prayer. It seems that
Paul can not say enough about prayer and how important it is.
Even with all the armor of God in place we still must pray.
Col 4:2 “Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it
with thanksgiving;” We are to be steadfastly devoted to prayer,
to give unremittingly to prayer, to persevere and not to faint in
prayer, to be in constant readiness for prayer, and be careful to
watch for all those things we should be thankful. We will never be
without much for which to thank God.
If one understands the importance that the Bible attaches to pray,
he is not surprised that six times such a strong exhortation is
pressed upon us. If one does not understand the importance of
prayer then he has these six exhortations to press him into the
practice of prayer so he will understand. Both on the corporate and
the individual levels we are to be steadfastly devoting ourselves to
prayer, to giving unremittingly to prayer, to persevering and not to
fainting in prayer, to be in constant readiness for prayer."
We have plenty of Biblical examples. There is a wrestling Jacob, a
Daniel who prayed three times a day, and a David who with all his
heart called upon his God. On the mountain we see Elias; in the
dungeon Paul and Silas. We have multitudes of commands, and
myriads of promises. We may be certain that whatever God has
made prominent in His Word, He intended to be conspicuous in our
lives. If He has said much about prayer, it is because He knows we
have much need of it. So deep are our necessities, that until we are
in heaven we must not cease to pray. CHS
++++++++++++++++++++
The Ultimate Answer to Prayer
If you could only pray one prayer what would it be?
No doubt Genesis 15 is one of the greatest chapters in the Bible. It is the
climax of God’s dealing with Abraham, known as the Father of the faithful.
“After these things the word of Jehovah came unto Abram in a vision,
saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great
reward.” Gen 15:1 cp Deut 10:9
When Abraham rescued Lot from the kings (Ch 14), he refused to take
any reward for doing so. Abraham’s concern was not the spoil of battle;
he was a man of principle and was occupied with the transcendent truths
of God. The “word of the Lord” that here comes to Abraham was
probably the pre-incarnate Jesus Christ. He says, “I am.... thy exceeding
great reward.” He Himself would be Abraham’s reward. Christ is our
reward; He was our representative before the judgment of God when he
died in our stead. Our reward is the fruit of His labors, we have His
imputed righteousness and He is our intercessor for us now at the
Father’s right hand. All the blessings of grace and glory are ours because
of Him and His work for us, now and for all eternity.
“The word of Lord,” the incarnate Christ Jesus speaks to us with a similar
message. In Luke 11:11-13 our Lord is teaching us about prayer. After
He tells the story of the three friends, which illustrates intercessory
prayer, He makes the analogy of a Father giving a son good things. “And
of which of you that is a father shall his son ask a loaf, and he give him a
stone? Or a fish, and he for a fish give him a serpent? Or if he shall ask
an egg, will he give him a scorpion? If ye then, being evil, know how to
give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your heavenly
Father give...” This is simple but profound and powerful logic. Of course
a Father would not give a rock and a scorpion to his son who asks for an
“egg sandwich.” Our Heavenly is not only as good as an earthly father;
He is infinitely better. But notice how our Lord interjects a new and
startling idea. Jesus identifies the object of the Father’s giving as “the
Holy Spirit to them that ask him?” Just as Abraham had the person of
God as His reward, which is infinitely better that all material and family
blessings, so we can have the person of the Holy Spirit as our very own,
which is infinitely better than all other things combined.
If the Holy Spirit is a gift of our Father then we can easily see the
reasonableness of our asking for what He wants to give. The text says
“...to them that ask.” Isn’t that the essence of what prayer really is, asking
for what God wants to give. Why should we ask for the Holy Spirit? We
must have the help of the Holy Spirit in wanting to pray. We must have
His power in the exercise of prayer. Phil 2:13 “for it is God who worketh
in you both to will and to work, for his good pleasure.” We do not know
what to pray for so we need Him to inform us and lead us in prayer. Rom
8:26 “in like manner the Spirit also helpeth our infirmity: for we know not
how to pray as we ought;” Prayer is an intimate partnership with the Holy
Spirit, He give us boldness to wrestle and prevail, as Jacob in Gen. 32:24,
to the overcoming of God’s reluctance to bless. Heb 4:16 “Let us
therefore draw near with boldness.”
Ultimate prayer request is appropriate for the ultimate answer to prayer.
We need to be begging God for a special relationship and presence of the
Holy Spirit. Is not God, the Giver, more than all His gifts?
Only when we have the Holy Spirit as our Lord is teaching will our prayer
life and our prayer meetings be what they need to be.
But it is the Holy Spirit of God Who is prayer’s great Helper.
Kneeling Christian
The
Prayer is an art, which only the Spirit can teach us. He is the giver
of all prayer. C. H. Spurgeon
The biggest thing God ever did for me was to teach me to pray in the
Spirit. Samuel Chadwick
Prayer "It is an art--this great and creative prayer--this intimate
conversation with God. "Magna ars est conversari cum Deo," says
Thomas a Kempis. It has to be learned. In social life we learn that
conversation is not mere talk. There is an art in it, if we are not to have a
table of gabblers. How much more is it so in the conversation of heaven!
We must learn that art by practice, and by keeping the best society in that
kind. Associate much with the great masters in this kind; especially with
the Bible; and chiefly with Christ. Cultivate His Holy Spirit. He is the grand
master of God's art and mystery in communing with man. And there is no
other teacher, at least, of man's art of communion with God.” The Soul
of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
Come, O Come, Thou Quickening Spirit
Come, O come, thou quick’ning Spirit,
God from all eternity!
May the power never fail us;
dwell within us constantly
Then shall truth and life and light
banish all the gloom of night.
Grant our hearts in fullest measure
wisdom, counsel, purity.
That we ever may be seeking
only that which pleaseth thee.
Let thy knowledge spread and grow,
working error’s overthrown.
Show us, Lord, the path of blessing:
when we trespass on our way,
cast, O Lord, our sins behind thee
and be with us day by day.
Should we stray, O Lord, recall;
work repentance when we fall.
Holy Spirit, strong and mighty,
thou who makest all things new,
make thy work within us perfect
and the evil foe subdue.
Grant us weapons for the strife
and with victory crown our life.
Heinrich Held, ca. 1664; Charles F. Gounod, 1872; Tr. by Charles W.
Schaeffer,1866; alt; alt. 1961
++++++++++++++++++++
We have Prayer because there was a
Resurrection
Christ’s resurrection proves He has the power to fulfill His
promises. Jesus said, “ ask what so ever you will and it will be
done.” “Truly I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be
taken up and cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but
believes that what he says is going to happen, it will be granted
him. Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask,
believe that you have received them, and they will be granted you.”
Mk 11:22-24 A dead Christ could not make good on any promise,
especially one like this. Only a resurrected and powerful Jesus can
give all things we ask in prayer.
Christ’s resurrection was necessary so He could continue His
work. “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works
that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do;
because I go to the Father. Whatever you ask in My name, that will
I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask Me
anything in My name, I will do it.” John 14:12-14 He could not do
it, what ever that might be, if He had not risen and gone to the
Father. We could not do greater things than He did if He were not
alive and working in us. There could not be answered prayer if He
had not risen and ascended. But He has risen and there is answer
to prayer. Praise God and the Lamb forever.
The first encounter with the resurrected Christ was to Mary as
she lingered in the garden, after the others had left perplexed and
discouraged, John 20:11-18 The Second was to the two on the
road to Emmaus Luke 24:13-32 The Third was to the eleven after
the two followers of Jesus talked to Him on the road to Emmaus,
came to Jerusalem. Luke 24:33-49 Note the progression: Jesus
showed Himself to one, then two, then to a small group and again
eight days later, and then to 500 brethren. It seems that out of the
10 appearances of the risen Lord Jesus only three are to single
individuals. What is the lesson in all this? Jesus revealed Himself
more to the corporate gatherings. Have you ever noticed that many
false religions are based on a supposed private revelation of Christ
to their leader. Beware of such claims that do not allow for
confirmation by others. Sometimes we are too blind to see and too
dull to understand how Jesus is revealed to His gathered people
through the preaching of the Word and prayer. It is when His
people gather together in consideration of the resurrected Savior
that He manifests Himself among them.
Christ’s resurrection and ascension was followed by prayer:
Acts 1:8-14 “...but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has
come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem,
and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the
earth. And after He had said these things, He was lifted up while
they were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their sight.
And as they were gazing intently into the sky while He was going,
behold, two men in white clothing stood beside them. They also
said,‘Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This
Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in
just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven.’ Then
they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is
near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey away. When they had
entered the city, they went up to the upper room where they were
staying; that is, Peter and John and James and Andrew, Philip and
Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus,
and Simon the Zealot, and Judas the son of James. These all with
one mind were continually devoting themselves to prayer, along
with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His
brothers.” We know the result of this is the first corporate prayer
meeting: the birth of the Church and the conversion of thousands.
The book of Acts is the story of a praying church. Would to God
that we could be more like the churches in Acts and less like the
churches in our day.
It took a resurrected Savior to send us the Holy Spirit “But I tell
you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go
away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to
you...But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into
all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever
He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to
come. He will glorify Me, for He will take of Mine and will disclose it
to you.” Jn 16:7,13,14 The Holy Spirit has come because Jesus
has been resurrected, ascended and glorified therefore we can
pray in the Spirit. “But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from
the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead
will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells
in you.” Rom 8:11 26 “In the same way the Spirit also helps our
weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the
Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.”
Rom 8:26
The physical resurrection is the basis of our spiritual
resurrection. Paul said “And you were dead in your trespasses
and sins, ....But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love
with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our
transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you
have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with
Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus. Eph 2:1,4-6 Spiritual
death is just as dead as physical death. Christ’s exaltation is our
exaltation and when we follow him into the presence of God, it is
with the same glory and dignity that He has. He is seated
performing His meditoral and intercessory work. We are “seated
with Him in the heavenly places” and this certainly must imply
“heavenly functions” as well. “we have such a high priest, who has
taken His seat at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the
heavens,” Heb 8:1 “Therefore He is able also to save forever
those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to
make intercession for them.” Heb 7:25 The resurrection has placed
us with Christ in His intercessory work and we follow His example
when we pray and intercede for others.
++++++++++++++++++++
Prison Praying
“The crowd rose up together against them, and the chief
magistrates tore their robes off them and proceeded to order them
to be beaten with rods. When they had struck them with many
blows, they threw them into prison, commanding the jailer to guard
them securely; and he, having received such a command, threw
them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks. But
about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns of
praise to God, and the prisoners were listening to them; and
suddenly there came a great earthquake, so that the foundations of
the prison house were shaken; and immediately all the doors were
opened and everyone’s chains were unfastened.” Acts 16:22-26
Note the striking resemblance to another prayer meeting recorded
in Acts 4:31 “And when they had prayed, the place where they had
gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy
Spirit and began to speak the word of God with boldness.”
Since there were two in attendance this was a corporate prayer
meeting. Our meetings don’t have to be large to be effective. We
all want to pray with such reality and power that it brings an
earthquake but are we willing to live the life that prepares one for
such praying? These kinds of results come from a life of total
commitment, without counting the cost that is, reckless
abandonment to God’s will. Jer 29:13 says “You will seek Me and
find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.” Less than full
hearted searching for God will not find His blessings. If we hold
back on seeking God, He will hold back on blessing us. Successful
living and praying comes with fervency and total commitment.
Our lives and our praying are inseparably connected. The way we
live effects the way we pray. The way we pray effects the way we
live. Our lives must be a continuous prayer and our prayer life must
be lived out into everyday life. Lives of holiness and commitment
make good soil for our praying to produce results. In Act 16 Paul
and Silas had taken a bold stand for truth and for Jesus, even to
the point of persecution. They had rebuked Satan and challenged
the livelihood of evil men. Satan does not loose ground without
fighting back. In v 20 the merchants take Paul and Silas to the
rulers for teaching contrary doctrine and multitudes rose up against
them. No evidence here of them trying to build a “seeker friendly”
church. They seemed to be operating on the principle “It is better
to be divided by truth than united by error.” Our prayer life,
individually or corporately, will be powerless if we are compromising
truths like God’s holiness and sovereignty.
This church began in a prayer meeting, note verse 13; their first
gathering was for prayer and verse 16 indicates that they were in
the practice of meeting together for prayer. It is not surprising when
we find Paul and Silas praying when they found themselves in
prison. That was the atmosphere in which this church at Philippi
functioned. The “earth quaking” results of their prayer was not from
a single prayer but from a prayer life, especially the prayer life of
the corporate body. We like to rejoice in Elijah’s prayer on Mt.
Carmel when he prayed only 62 words (1 Ki 18:36,37) and the fire
of God fell and consumed the wet offerings and the water in the
trenches. A great prayer and a great victory for God and His
people, but we forget that Elijah had been alone with God for over
three years. It takes a lot of faithful “behind the scenes” praying to
make visible victory like Elijah’s or Paul’s. A church that prays in the
lonely nights will see the blessings on Sunday mornings. “But
you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and
pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees
what is done in secret will reward you.” Mat 6:6
I do not hear Paul asking Silas, “Brother Silas, please pray for my
back it hurts so bad and I am afraid it going to get infected.” Neither
do I hear Silas ask, “Brother Paul, these gashes on my head are
giving me a migraine and I believe God wants to heal me. Please
pray that I will have the faith to be healed.” God certainly can and
does, in His sovereignty, heal our physical bodies. But these two
were so busy praising and singing that they didn’t have any thought
about their own physical condition. This is the kind of praying that
we need. We need to be so absorbed with the things of the
Kingdom that we have no care for our personal comforts.
Paul and Silas were experiencing the same thing that the other
disciples had as recorded in Acts 5:41 “So they went on their way
from the presence of the Council, rejoicing that they had been
considered worthy to suffer shame for His name.” Our text says
they “were praying and singing hymns of praise to God.” What
were they praising God for? Simply, “that they had been
considered worthy to suffer shame for His name.”
If they can pray and praise in the stocks, then surely we can do no
less in our air-conditioned churches. The earthquake gave liberty to
the prisoners. This illustrates what happens to the church when
God’s praying people gain the victory in prayer. They get the
freedom and power to serve God. Note the three prominent
conversions in this story: Lydia (and her household), the slave girl,
and the jailor. When the corporate body of believers are praying,
then we should not be surprised when sin is dealt with, sinners are
saved, and the church grows.
Later Paul wrote back to the Philippians and assured them that
“Now I want you to know, brethren, that my circumstances have
turned out for the greater progress of the gospel.” Phil 1:12
++++++++++++++++++++
The Church was Born in a Prayer Meeting
“Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mountain called the
Mount of Olives (which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’’s journey
away). When they had entered Jerusalem, they went to the upstairs
room where they were staying. Peter and John, and James, and
Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James
son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James
were there. All these continued together in prayer with one mind,
together with the women, along with Mary the mother of Jesus, and
his brothers.” Acts 1:12-14
“When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in
one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a
violent rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were
sitting. And there appeared to them tongues as of fire distributing
themselves, and they rested on each one of them. And they were
all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues,
as the Spirit was giving them utterance.” Acts 2:1-4
The element something is born in is the element it is to live in. The
seed is placed in the ground to grow and produce many more
seeds. A fish is hatched in the water to swim and does not want it
any other way. An animal born in the wild is designed to live in the
wild. The monkey is in the tree to swing with ease and delight. An
eagle is born for great heights and comfortably floats in the thin air.
Man was created in the image of God to commune with Him and if
he doesn’’t, he is the loneliest of all creatures. A child of God is so
by birth. He is born confessing his sin and calling on the Lord for
salvation. The first words Paul uttered were a prayer of submission.
““Who are You, Lord?”” Act 9:5 We began our spiritual life in
praying for it and we must continue it in the same way. Our birth
from above gives us a ““spiritual”” and a Godly nature. ““For by
these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises,
so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature,
having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust.”” 2 Pet
1:4 We must then continue to partake of the Divine nature as we
live in this world. ““If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you,
ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.”” John 16:7
The Church (the local and visible body of believers) was born in a
prayer meeting. Yes, they existed as individuals before Acts 2, but
as a functioning body of believer they began to exist in Acts 2, in a
prayer meeting that had the manifest presence and power of God.
The church began in the real presence of God and should continue
in the experience thereof. Anything else is not the will of God. The
church is to administer God's Kingdom through prayer. It is to
commission labors by means of prayer “While they were ministering
to the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said,‘‘Set apart for Me
Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.’ Then,
when they had fasted and prayed and laid their hands on them,
they sent them away.” Acts 13:2,3 The church is to requisition all
the supplies necessary to keep the kingdom functioning and
advancing. It is said that an army marches on it stomach but God’’s
army marches on its knees. Our Lord teaches us in the model
prayer to pray to the Father ““Your kingdom come. Your will be
done, on earth as it is in heaven.” Mat 6:10 Implicit in this prayer is
the request for everything that is needed in the administration of the
Kingdom of God.
Peter teaches us that we are “a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a
holy nation, a people for God’’s own possession, so that you may
proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of
darkness into His marvelous light;” 1 Peter 2:9 “A royal priesthood”
is body of priests that intercede for others with royal dignity. This is
what we do when we pray for one another. The exercise of this
priesthood is God’’s will and way for the church to operate.
The church must continue in the atmosphere and function it was
birthed in if it is to be effective spiritually. Most evangelical churches
have little or no emphasis of prayer. Some have huge buildings and
a staff of professional administrators but they are powerless in the
spiritual dimension because they are not a praying people, “a body
of priests.” Most would acknowledge that we begin the Christian life
in and by the aid of the Holy Spirit but “Are you so foolish? Having
begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?” Gal
3:3
“A dynamic praying church must be built from the inside out,
employing all four levels of prayer: the secret closet, the family
altar, small group praying and finally, the congregational setting.”
Developing your Secret Closet of Prayer, Richard Burr, p 19. The
corporate prayer meeting is the most important meeting of the
church. Jesus said “My Father’’s house shall be a house of prayer---” He didn’t say it should be a house of preaching, or singing and a
lot of other good and necessary things. It is to be primarily and
fundamentally a place of prayer. This is not where our praying is
done in proxy by “the priest,” we are all priests, we all must pray.
The corporate prayer meeting is the most important meeting of the
church because it gives all the other meetings their effectiveness
and creates an atmosphere of God’s presence.
Examine the book of Acts and see how frequently and fervently the
church is in prayer and how powerful it is. “These that have turned
the world upside down.” Acts 17:6 Prayer and power are
inseparable.
The element something is born in is the element it is to live in.
--------------------------------------------------A congregation without a prayer meeting is essentially defective in
its organization, and so must be limited in its efficiency. The Prayer
Meeting and Its History, J. B. Johnston
History confirms the truth that wherever evangelical and vital
religion flourish, there lives the earnest gatherings for social prayer.
The Prayer Meeting and Its History, J. B. Johnston
++++++++++++++++++++
Persistent Praying
“Now He was telling them a parable to show that at all times they
ought to pray and not to lose heart. In a certain city there was a
judge who did not fear God and did not respect man. There was a
widow in that city, and she kept coming to him, saying, ‘Give me
legal protection from my opponent.’ For a while he was unwilling;
but afterward he said to himself, ‘Even though I do not fear God nor
respect man, yet because this widow bothers me, I will give her
legal protection, otherwise by continually coming she will wear me
out.’” Luk 18:1-6
The “lose heart” or “not faint” is translation of ma ekkakeo = not to
be utterly spiritless, not to be wearied out, exhausted. It occurs 6
times in the NT. Two of those occurrences compliment our text.
Gal 6:9 “For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh
reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the
Spirit reap eternal life. Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in
due time we will reap if we do not grow weary.” It is encouraging to
know that if we keep sowing our effort into the work of the Spirit we
will reap the benefit in due time.
2 The 3:13 “But as for you, brethren, do not grow weary of doing
good.” Prayer is the very best “good” that we can do, so for sure
we should not let ourselves get weary of faint hearted in praying.
Matthew Henry reminds us “All God's people are praying people.
Here, earnest steadiness in prayer for spiritual mercies is taught.”
This rebukes those who pray not at all or seldom or just when it is
convenient. If we pray only when it is convenient we will not pray
significantly or sufficiently. Powerful praying comes only with great
sacrifice and expenditure of time and effort.
We are to pray in the good times and in the bad times; Seasons of
health and sickness; Times of victory and temptation; Whether
people desert us or support us. Even when it appears that God has
deserted us and not answered our prayers, we exhorted to not
loose heart and become exhausted.
This is not to be understood, that a man should be always actually
engaged in the act of praying, at every moment in private devotion
to God, or attending public prayer with the saints. There is much
else for us to do, religious, personal, and civil. The meaning is, that
a man should persevere in prayer, and quit, or be dejected,
because he doesn’t get an immediate answer.
Earlier in this gospel our Lord had taught persistence in prayer.
“Then He said to them, Suppose one of you has a friend, and goes
to him at midnight and says to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves;
for a friend of mine has come to me from a journey, and I have
nothing to set before him;’ and from inside he answers and says,
‘Do not bother me; the door has already been shut and my children
and I are in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything.’ I tell you,
even though he will not get up and give him anything because he is
his friend, yet because of his persistence he will get up and give
him as much as he needs. So I say to you, ask, and it will be given
to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.
For everyone who asks, receives; and he who seeks, finds; and to
him who knocks, it will be opened.” Luk 11:5-10
When did the interceding man stop asking—when he received what
he needed. Not to lose heart means not to quit asking, not to quit
seeking, not to quit knocking. Our Lord tells us, if we keep on
asking, seeking, and knocking “it will be opened.”
God could answer our prayers speedy but many times He does not.
Not because He doesn’t want to answer, but because we have not
developed sufficiently to receive the blessing. God, Who is in
sovereign control of all people and events, includes in His plan our
asking for those things He wants to do. He moves us to begin our
asking process at the right time so as to accomplish in us what He
wants accomplished in perfect timing with when he wants to answer
our prayer. “Men would pluck their mercies green, when the Lord
would have them ripe.” God gives the answer in perfect timing with
the asker.
“And the Lord said, ‘Hear what the unrighteous judge said; now, will
not God bring about justice for His elect who cry to Him day and
night, and will He delay long over them? I tell you that He will bring
about justice for them quickly. However, when the Son of Man
comes, will He find faith on the earth?’” Luk 18:6-8
We are to put our complete trust in our Loving God. “Therefore
humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may
exalt you at the proper time, casting all your anxiety on Him,
because He cares for you.” 1 Pet 5:6,7
Unanswered yet? The Prayer your lips have pleaded
In Agony of heart these many years?
Does faith begin to fail; is hope departing,
And think you all in vain those falling tears?
Say not the Father hath not heard your prayer;
You shall have your desire sometime, somewhere.
Unanswered yet? Though when you first presented
This petition at the Father’s throne,
It seemed you could not wait the time of asking,
So urgent was your heart to make it known.
Though years have passed since then, do not despair;
The Lord will answer you sometime, somewhere.
Unanswered yet? Nay, do not say unanswered,
Perhaps your part is not yet wholly done,
The work began when first your prayer was uttered,
And God will finish what He has begun.
Keep the incense burning at the shrine of prayer,
His glory you shall see sometime, somewhere.
Unanswered yet? Faith cannot be unanswered;
Here feet are firmly planted on the Rock;
Amid the wildest storms she stands undaunted,
Nor quails before the loudest thunder shock.
She knows Omnipotence has heard her prayer,
And cries, “It shall be done sometime, somewhere.”
Ophelia Guyon Browning
++++++++++++++++++++
Sound and Sober Praying
“The end of all things is near; therefore, be of sound judgment and sober spirit for
the purpose of prayer.”
1 Peter 4:7
Let’s look closely at the basis for Peter’s exhortation to prayer.
“The end of all things.” The New English Translation has “For the
culmination of all things is near.”
The Greek for “end” is telos and means termination, the limit at
which a thing ceases to be (always of the end of some act or state,
but not of the end of a period of time), the last in any succession or
series, that by which a thing is finished, its close, the aim, purpose.
So the word “end” means either the cessation of something or the
purpose of something.
When Peter says “The end of all things” he is not referring to the
end of time but to one of the following:
1. Of the universe when all things will be burnt up. 2. Of one’s
eminent death 3. Of the OT economy. 4. Of the end of the age
when Jesus returns.
Before we decide which he is referring to we need to examine “is
near”or “has drawn near” which is in the perfect tense in Greek and
describes an action which is viewed as having been completed in
the past, once and for all, not needing to be repeated but has
continuing results. The same word in the same tense is in Mat 3:2
“Now in those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the
wilderness of Judea, saying, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is
at hand.’” John was preaching that the kingdom of heaven had
already come and was there. Jesus' last cry from the cross,
tetelestai ("It is finished!"), is a good example of the perfect tense,
namely "It (the atonement) has been accomplished, completely,
once and for all time."
Our conclusion of what this verse is saying is “The purpose of all
things, that is the previous OT economy and the plan of God, has
come to realization and is now with us. That purpose is the “Person
of Jesus Christ,” he fulfilled the law and brought it to completion.”
Now on the basis of all things have found their culmination in Jesus
we are exhorted to “be of sound judgment and sober spirit for the
purpose of prayer”
The first exhortation refers to our mental state “of sound judgment.”
The word sophroneo means to be of sound mind, to put a
moderate estimate upon one's self, think of one's self soberly. Paul
said it in another way in Rom 12:2 “do not be conformed to this
world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you
may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and
acceptable and perfect.” This is fundamentally important in our
prayer life. We must have the same mind as our Savior and pray in
harmony with Him. “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you,
ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.” Jon 15:7
The second exhortation “be of…sober spirit” refers to our relationship
to the world around us, nepho means to abstain from wine, to be
calm and collected in spirit, temperate, dispassionate, circumspect,
to exercise self control. “Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your
adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking
someone to devour” 1 Pet 5:8
Paul in Eph 6:18 gives us a sharp contrast “And do not get drunk
with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit.” Wine
represents two things: joy and control. It is not going to excess with
either that we need to strive for. We can be intoxicated with other
things besides wine such as pleasure, business, pride, envy, anger,
family, etc. The church today is intoxicated on crowds, music,
drama, personalities, even preaching in contrast to what Jesus
said, “Is it not written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer
for all the nations’? But you have made it a robbers’ den.” Mar
11:17 A church can not be a “house of prayer” like Jesus said it
should be and at the same time give allegiance to the methods and
principles of the world.
We need to be of sound mind and sober spirit and watch for all
opportunities for praying, both in private and in public. We need to
be observant as to what we should be praying about for ourselves
and for others, for such things as are agreeable to the revealed will
of God, and watch for the Spirit of God to enlarge our hearts in
prayer, and to assist us both as to the matter and manner of
praying. We should expect God to answer and return to Him thanks
for the mercy given.
The conclusion is that we are to be rightly related to our Savior my
abiding in Him and to the world by discipline ourselves to do only
His will. He is the culmination, fulfillment and purpose of all things.
“For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on
earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers
or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for
Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.”
Col. 1:16,17 In the understanding of Jesus as given these two
verses which is the basis of our praying.
If the life is not one of self-denial--of fasting--that is, letting the world
go; of prayer--that is, laying hold of God then prayer is neither
spiritual or profitable.
Andrew Bonar defined fasting as abstaining from anything that
hindered prayer.
Prayer is the one hand with which we grasp the Invisible; fasting
the other, with which we let loose and cast away the visible.
Andrew Murray
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The Kind of Spirit In Which to Pray
“Pray, then, in this way: ‘Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed
be Your name. ‘Your kingdom come. Your will be done, On earth
as it is in heaven. ‘Give us this day our daily bread. ‘And forgive
us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. ‘And do not
lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Yours is the
kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.” Matt 6:9-13
What is often called “The Lord’s Prayer” is really a pattern prayer
for us to learn how to pray. It is inspired having come from our Lord
and is infinite having come from our God. We can never exhaust
its blessing for us, and we should endeavor to pray in the spirit of
this prayer. By “spirit” we mean, the spiritual attitude in which we
should pray.
1. A Unified Spirit.
“Our” Not “my” but “our.” Jesus never prayed “our Father” here He
is instructing us to say “our Father.” Jesus’ sonship or relation to
the Father is different that ours. He is the unique son of God Joh
3:16 “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten
Son,” “Only begotten means unique and unlike any other. But the
children of God are all alike in the way we become the children of
God and the way come to God. The prayer experience is on level
ground. All of us have the same access and privilege. We should
pray knowing that we not alone in our approach to God but that we
come to God with others.
2. A Filial Spirit.
“Father who is in heaven” We can, and should at times, pray to
the Son, Jesus Christ, and to the Spirit, the Holy Spirit. The
primary direction of our prayers should be to the Father. We should
look to Him as the one that gives us all things: life itself, substance
for life, guidance in life, etc. We are to pray conscious of an intimate
relationship with a loving Father.
3. A Reverent Spirit.
“Hallowed be Your name:” “Name” represents the person of the
name and his reputation, his honor. It is of chief concern to the
child of God that the honor of the Father be upheld. Some cultures
put great significance on the family name and the dignity of the
ancestors. We are to pray for God’s name to be honored in all the
issues of life.
4. A Loyal Spirit.
“Your kingdom come.” It is God’s will and rule and authority that
is the deciding factor. In all the issues of life, whether it is the
kingdoms and nations of the world or the decisions of daily work
and play we must strive to experience the rule or kingdom of God.
Here we are taught to pray for the extension of God’s rule in the
world.
5. A Submissive Spirit”
“Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven.” Paul’s
exhortation “Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God,
to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to
God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be
conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your
mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is
good and acceptable and perfect.” Rom 12:1,2 It is not the “sweet
by and by” (as in “Your kingdom come”) but the “nasty now and
now” that requires our sacrifice. We are supposed to pray that we
and others will experience God’s will.
6. A Dependent Spirit.
“Give us this day our daily bread”
Mat 6:30,31 “But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is
alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not
much more clothe you? You of little faith! “Do not worry then,
saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we
wear for clothing?” We are to pray for today’s need and tomorrow
we can pray for its needs.
7. A Penitent Spirit.
“And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our
debtors.”
Effective prayer requires that we have a valid relationship vertically
and horizontally. Vertically with God. We cannot approach God
without our sin debt having been satisfied. The only satisfaction that
God will accept is the substitionary death of Jesus Christ.
Horizontally with others. To not forgive others that have wronged
us is to prove that we do not know what this is. A person that has
experienced the forgiveness of God will be generous to forgive
others. We are to pray for forgiveness and show our appreciation
by forgiving others.
8. A Trusting Spirit
“And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil”
Jam 4:14,15 “Yet you do not know what your life will be like
tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and
then vanishes away. Instead, you ought to say, If the Lord wills, we
will live and also do this or that.” I do not know what tomorrow
holds, but I know Who holds tomorrow. We are to pray that God
will guide us away from sin and Satan.
Some of the outline taken from Prayer Power Unlimited, J. Oswald
Sanders p 110
++++++++++++++++++++
Agonizing Prayer
As Paul closed his letter to the Romans he asked for their prayers.
“Now I urge you, brethren, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love
of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God
for me, that I may be rescued from those who are disobedient in
Judea, and that my service for Jerusalem may prove acceptable to
the saints; so that I may come to you in joy by the will of God and
find refreshing rest in your company. Now the God of peace be
with you all. Amen.” Rom 15:30-33
“Strive together with me” is the translation of the compound word
sunagonizomai. It has the prefix sun which means with or
together and agonizomai which means to enter a contest: contend
in the gymnastic games, to contend with adversaries, to fight, to
contend, struggle, with difficulties and dangers, to endeavor with
strenuous zeal, strive: to obtain something. We get our English
word “agonize” from this Greek word.
Paul is asking the Roman Christians to join with him in agonizing
prayer as He goes to Jerusalem. Paul must have had some idea of
the possible problems facing him.
agonizomai with out the prefix occurs seven times in the New
Testament; lets look at how this word is used and how we might
learn how to pray.
Luk 13:24 “Strive to enter through the narrow door; for many, I tell
you, will seek to enter and will not be able.” Jesus preached a
different Gospel than what is commonly preached today. Today it
is an easy gospel, “come down forward and make a decision.” The
socially acceptable gospel is “God has a wonderful plan for your life
that is free from pain and heartache.” But Jesus says for us to
strive or agonize to enter a narrow door, and many will not be able
to enter. There is a kind of praying that can only be realized by
great struggle. We are to continue in our Christian life, especially in
prayer, with the same fervor and zeal with which we came to know
our Savior.
Joh 18:36 “Jesus answered, ‘My kingdom is not of this world. If My
kingdom were of this world, then My servants would be fighting so
that I would not be handed over to the Jews; but as it is, My
kingdom is not of this realm.’” Our word here is translated
“fighting.” Our praying is to agonize and contend, even fight, as we
would strive for the safety of a friend of family. We should pray
unselfishly and heroically for others.
1 Cor 9:25-27 “Everyone who competes in the games exercises
self-control in all things. They then do it to receive a perishable
wreath, but we an imperishable. Therefore I run in such a way, as
not without aim; I box in such a way, as not beating the air; but I
discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have
preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified.” Our word is
here translated “competes in the games.” An athlete in training is
very focused and committed to his training and uses self-control in
all things. Here we see that prayer is something worthy of this
degree of dedication. We are to agonize in prayer as the athlete
does in his competition.
Col 1:28,29 “We proclaim Him, admonishing every man and
teaching every man with all wisdom, so that we may present every
man complete in Christ. For this purpose also I labor, striving
according to His power, which mightily works within me.” Paul’s
experience of the power of God working in him resulted in a striving
or agonizing to proclaim the glory of Jesus. There is a similar
experience in agonizing prayer.
Col 4:12 “Epaphras, who is one of your number, a bondslave of
Jesus Christ, sends you his greetings, always laboring earnestly
(agonizing) for you in his prayers, that you may stand perfect and
fully assured in all the will of God.” This is agonizing intercessory
prayer. Most Christians never get past the “now I lay me down to
sleep” prayers, except when there is a crisis, like a sick child or
terminal illness, facing us. We pray for our parents, children or
friends, but to agonize in intercessory prayer for kingdom issues,
well, that is another level of prayer that is seldom realized.
1 Tim 6:12 “Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of the eternal life
to which you were called, and you made the good confession in the
presence of many witnesses.” This could be translated “ agonize
the good agony of faith.” We are to strive and agonize as the good
soldier does in battle. We need to pray as if it were a matter of life
and death, because it is. There are souls that need to be plucked
from the burning. If we prayed like a soldier fighting, we would see
much greater answer to prayer.
2 Tim 4:6,7 “For I am already being poured out as a drink offering,
and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good
fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith;” No doubt
that part of Paul’s success was agonizing prayer. We will not be
considered as successful and having kept the faith, if we do not
agonize in prayer.
If what we have discussed here is real prayer, then most of have
never really prayed. The best example of this kind of praying is our
Lord the night before His death. In Luke 22:44 another form of our
word occurs “And being in agony He was praying very fervently;
and His sweat became like drops of blood, falling down upon the
ground.” Here it is agonia, which is the noun meaning a struggle
for victory, wrestling, of severe mental struggles and emotions,
agony, anguish. When our Lord saw the contents of the cup from
which he had to drink He experienced great agony in soul.
Sometimes we have to pray as He did, in great agony as we
experience the will of God.
“… The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.”
Jam 5:16
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Corporate Boldness
“Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy
place by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way which He
inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh, 21 and since
we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near
with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts
sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed
with pure water. 23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope
without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; 24 and let us
consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, 25
not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some,
but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day
drawing near.” Heb 10:19-25
In his reference to “the holy place” the writer is thinking of public
and corporate worship, not personal and private times of
communion with God. The emphasis is that we don’t need the
animal sacrifices nor the Levitical priesthood in our worship. The
temple was probably still standing when this was written, so the
writer is saying that we don’t need that temple and Levitical system.
By now the gospel of Jesus’ accomplished work of salvation had
spread into Europe and there were “churches” scattered in many
cites, none of which needed to be concerned with the temple /
Levitical system, it had past away for the new and living way. It is
by the “blood of Jesus, by a new and living way, which He
inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh.”
We are given five exhortations in v 22-25:
1. v 22 “let us draw near”
2. v 23 ”Let us hold fast”
3. v 24 “and let us consider”
4. v 25 “not forsaking our own assembling together”
5. v 25 “encouraging one another”
Who is the “us” here? In this context the writer is contrasting the
old way with the new way. The old way is that of an individual (in
the OT economy) bringing his sacrifice to the place of sacrifice, the
tabernacle or temple. The contrasting parallel is the Christian (in
the NT economy) bringing his spiritual sacrifice (1 Pet: 5 “you also,
as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy
priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through
Jesus Christ.) The parallel is of two economies or societies of faith.
The one trusting for that which was to come and the other in that
which has come. In both societies it is the individual coming to the
place of corporate interaction and manifestation of one’s relation
with God. In both there is a public place to come and assemble. In
the OT it was the tabernacle or temple, in the NT it is the church.
Now it is our responsibility to direct our spiritual experience toward
the visible assembly, the church. “…this drawing near contains all
the holy worship of the church, both public and private, all the ways
of our access unto God by Christ.” John Owen
But what is the relationship of this passage to personal prayer and
communion with God? Is it just to be applied to the believer’s
personal life? No, we think it is more than applicable. Corporate
exercise is not something separate from the personal and
individual. It is the individuals’ actions brought together that make
the corporate action. So for us to come boldly to the throne of
grace corporately, we must be coming individually with the same
interaction with God.
The teaching of this passage is that we should “draw near and hold
fast” to this new way of coming to God. As we come together we
should consider how to stimulate one another to love and good
deeds. Even though some have forsaken the assembling together,
we should encourage ourselves to be faithful.
As we come to pray and worship our God, let’s be reminded of the
great things our God has done for us and be faithful and not grow
weary in prayer and praise.
----------------------------------------------“If we pray among a select society of Christians, we draw near to
God with holy boldness, something like what we use in our duties of
secret worship. We have reason to take more freedom among
fellow saints and whose hearts have felt many of the same
workings as our own.” A Guide to Prayer, Isaac Watts, p 58
Nothing is more calculated to begat a spirit of prayer than to unite in
social prayer with one who has the Spirit himself. Mighty Prevailing
Prayer, Wesley Duewel
++++++++++++++++++++
Prayer And The Three Abiding Virtues.
1Co 13:12-13 "For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to
face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have
been fully known. But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but
the greatest of these is love." nasb
1. The relationship of Prayer and Faith from God
2. The relationship of Prayer and Hope for God
3. The relationship of Prayer and Love to God
++++++++++++++++++++
The Relationship of Prayer and Faith
1 Co 13:11-13 "When I was a child, I used to speak like a child,
think like a child, reason like a child; when I became a man, I did
away with childish things. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but
then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just
as I also have been fully known. But now faith, hope, love, abide
these three; but the greatest of these is love."
Psa 56:9 "Then my enemies will turn back in the day when I call;
This I know, that God is for me."
Psa 86:7 "In the day of my trouble I shall call upon You, For You
will answer me."
The Definition of faith.
The word faith has become a "byword" "buzzword" "catchphrase"
"religious jargon" "church lingo" everyone uses it but few
understand it. Prayer is interacting with God in talking to Him and
listening to Him, reflecting on the perfections of God and asking for
others and ourselves.
Now defining "faith" is not so easy.
The noun is conviction of the truth of anything, belief. In the NT of
a conviction or belief respecting man’s relationship to God and
divine things, generally with the included idea of trust. In Greek
Mythology Peitho was the goddess of persuasion in Greek
mythology.
The verb is to think to be true, to be persuaded of, to credit, place
confidence in.
Faith and belief are translations of the same Greek word. In the
spiritual sense who is persuading who?????
The Source of Faith, it is a gift of God.
Rom 12:3 For through the grace given to me I say to everyone
among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to
think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has
allotted to each a measure of faith.
Eph 2:8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that
not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;
Eph 6:23 Peace be to the brethren, and love with faith, from God
the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Phi 1:29 For to you it has been granted for Christ's sake, not only
to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake,
If faith is a gift of God, then it is something He does.
He is the giver and we are the gifted.
passive.
He is active and we are
If we use the words persuasion and conviction to help us
understand faith, then the process is:
God persuades us. God convicts us.
God faiths us.
Faith is not our contribution although it is a condition to salvation.
What Augustine said can still said by every saint: "Give what Thou
dost ask, and ask what Thou wilt."
1 Co 4:7 For who regards you as superior? What do you have that
you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as
if you had not received it?
When the Scripture says that faith is necessary to prayer God is
saying that He must do the work of persuading, convicting, faithing
us.
What is our responsibility and what can we do to pray in faith, pray
the prayer of faith?
Let's examine the Verses where faith and prayer are used
together.
Mat 9:28,9
When He entered the house, the blind men came up to Him, and
Jesus said to them, "Do you believe that I am able to do this?"
They said to Him, "Yes, Lord." Then He touched their eyes,
saying, "It shall be done to you according to your faith."
Mat 21:22
"And all things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive."
Mar 11:24
"Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask,
believe that you have received them, and they will be granted you."
Heb 10:22
"let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith,
having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our
bodies washed with pure water."
Jam 1:6
"But he must ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who
doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind."
God beliefs us
Jam 5:15
"and the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick, and
the Lord will raise him up, and if he has committed sins, they will be
forgiven him."
Replace the English word "faith" or "believe" with the
"persuasion" or "conviction"
Mat 9:28,9
When He entered the house, the blind men came up to Him, and
Jesus said to them, "Do you have conviction that I am able to do
this?" They said to Him, "Yes, Lord." Then He touched their eyes,
saying, "It shall be done to you according to your conviction."
Mat 21:22
"And all things you ask in prayer, being persuaded, you will
receive."
Mar 11:24
"Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, be
persuaded that you have received them, and they will be granted you."
Heb 10:22
"let us draw near with a sincere heart in full persuasion, having
our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies
washed with pure water."
Jam 1:6
"But he must ask in persuasion without any doubting, for the one
who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the
wind."
Jam 5:15
"and the prayer offered in conviction will restore the one who is
sick, and the Lord will raise him up, and if he has committed sins,
they will be forgiven him."
So what is the conclusion about the relation of prayer and
faith:
God requires that we be spiritually mature in understanding Him,
His character, His revealed will in general and His will for our lives
personally.
Is faith the same as trust? No. We trust because of faith, trust does
not produce faith.
Little faith will bring your souls to heaven
But great faith will bring heaven to your souls. CHS
Faith is not the thing hoped for but it is the substance by proxy, that
is, faith is so strong that it has substance like unto the thing hoped
for.
Jesus sometimes performed miracles without the requirement of
faith (Luk 7:1-16) and sometimes He looked for faith before He
exercised His power. God's ability is not limited by our faith, but He
does sometimes require it. It is reasonable for Him to expect it
when we know who He is.
It seems to me that God's plan is to develop in Christian character
first in understanding and knowing Him and then He can do great
things for us.
Our prayer must be founded in our understanding and persuasion
of Who God is and What He want to do.
++++++++++++++++++++
The Relationship of Prayer and Hope
Hope is the matrix, context, atmosphere in which we pray.
++++++++++++++++++++
The Relationship of Prayer and Love
The Biblical definition of love is the choosing of the object to be
loved and dedicating oneself to its well being.
Love for God must be an unconditional love. This is not so in our
love for other humans. We can love our children, or our spouse,
dearly but not love everything about them. But love for God must
love everything about Him without reservation or exception. This is
of the essence of our active relationship with Him or communion
with Him, which is prayer.
Similarities between love and prayer:
<>Both love and prayer require choice.
In prayer we choose, by the help of the Holy Spirit, what we are to
pray about and we dedicate ourselves to that. Some things all of
us should pray about and some things are particular individually to
us. As obedient children we chose to pray for what the Holy Spirit
leads us to pray about.
<>Both love and prayer are evidences of spiritual Life.
1 Jon 3:14 "We know that we have passed out of death into life,
because we love the brethren. He who does not love abides in
death."
Paul in his conversion is a good illustration:
Act 9:11 "And the Lord said to him, 'Get up and go to the street
called Straight, and inquire at the house of Judas for a man from
Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying,'"
We don't think it unusual when babies cry, its natural we expect it.
There is a very real sense in which the cries of a baby are really
prayers. They are asking for what they need, or want.
Being a mature and powerful pray-er is not a requirement for us
to be saved but having the desire to pray is a necessary part of
a Christian.
A prayerless soul is a Christless soul.
<>Both love and prayer require sacrifice.
True love necessarily involves denying ourselves and serving the
one we love.
Prayer involves denying ourselves and investing our time and our
emotional involvement into the lives of those for whom we pray.
We call this intercession.
The mechanical saying of prayers does not require love, but the
true intercession does.
Three times we have the two words "love" and "pray" brought
together.
Mat 5:44-5 "But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those
who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is
in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good,
and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous." If we are to
love our enemies how much more so our spiritual brothers.
Mat 6:5 "When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for
they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street
corners so that they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they
have their reward in full.
Phi 1:8-11 For God is my witness, how I long for you all with the
affection of Christ Jesus. And this I pray, that your love may
abound still more and more in real knowledge and all discernment,
so that you may approve the things that are excellent, in order to be
sincere and blameless until the day of Christ; having been filled
with the fruit of righteousness which comes through Jesus Christ, to
the glory and praise of God.
In Eph 3:14-19 Paul referred to prayer as "I bow my knees," which
the modern church does not do,
"For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom
every family in heaven and on earth derives its name, that He
would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be
strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man, so
that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you,
being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend
with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and
depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge,
that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God."
Her Paul prays for two things for the believer:
1. To be "strengthened with power through His Spirit"
2. To "be able to comprehend…and to know the love of Christ."
This is more than a clue of what we should pray for one another.
If we love someone then we will look for ways to do them good.
We could feed them, cloth them, comfort them, discipline them.
Almost entirely are efforts to love someone are direct and physical
or emotional. But what is the really best thing for them? It is not
physical things and comforts but is a right relationship with God.
We can't give them that as we give other things. That has to come
from God. We can't cause that to happen directly but we can by
going to God for them, by praying for them that is interceding for
them to the God Who can do the very best for them.
If we really love them we will pray for them. The underlining motive
in praying for people is that they would know Him and love Him for
His Glory.
We are to love the Lord our God with all our hearts ------ this is an
object for intercessory prayer.
Our greatest example is our Lord Jesus and we see His example
most clearly when He was dying for us.
Joh 15:13 "Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down
his life for his friends."
Conclusion:
What was said over 130 years ago is still true today-- "It has been
often remarked, that the best thermometer to indicate the spiritual
warmth of a congregation, is the attendance of its members upon
social prayer meetings. That man who neglects the social prayer
meeting, no matter how long and loud he talks about 'contending
for the faith once delivered to the saints,' has, at best, but a frozen
orthodoxy. That faith that doesn't work by love, and doesn't
produce good fruits, is very likely a spurious faith. Ordinarily, faith
manifests its life and developments as conspicuously in a prayer
meeting as anywhere else. The attendance at the sanctuary on the
Sabbath, is not so good a test of genuine religion as the attendance
upon the prayer meeting is.” The Prayer Meeting and Its History
by J.B. Johnston
Adoniram Judson said, “God loves importunate prayer so much
that He will not give us much blessing without it. And the reason
He loves such prayer is that He loves us, and knows that it is a
necessary preparation for our receiving the richest blessing He is
waiting and longing to bestow.”
Rom 15:30 "Now I urge you, brethren, by our Lord Jesus Christ
and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your
prayers to God….." nasb
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III. Topical
1. Praying and the Persons of God
a. Praying to God in General
The Trinitarian Aspect of Prayer
“For of him, and through him, and unto him, are all things. To him
be the glory for ever. Amen.” Rom 11:36
As we apply this verse to the experience of praying we can clearly
see prayer’s relation to the Trinity:
1. We pray because Jesus opened the way.
Jesus”
“of (ek) him the
Jesus is our example and our access. John 14:6 “Jesus saith unto
him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the
Father, but by me.” Jesus’s death opened the way for all His
people. For generations the veil in the temple symbolized the
unapproachableness of a Holy God, but when Jesus died “the veil
of the temple was rent in two from the top to the bottom; and the
earth did quake; and the rocks were rent.” Mt 27:51
The life, death and life again of our Savor Jesus is sufficient to
dispel every hindrance to our coming to the Father. “Being
therefore justified by faith, we have peace with God through our
Lord Jesus Christ; through whom also we have had our access by
faith into this grace wherein we stand; and we rejoice in hope of the
glory of God.” Rom 5:1,2 We are persuaded that we have access
to God and experience His unmerited benefits with great joy in the
Glory of God now and yet to come.
Jesus made the way and the Spirit strengthens us that we may
approach the Father in a personal and intimate relationship.
2. We pray by means of the Spirit’s power within.“through (dia) him
Spirit”
Jesus promised us an Advocate, or Helper (Greek is paracletos)
“And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another
Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of
truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not,
neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and
shall be in you.” John 14:16-17 The world can not see the invisible
but we can be like Moses, Heb 11:27.
Paul specifies that He will help us when we pray, “Likewise the
Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should
pray for as we ought:” Rom 8:26 and also in Eph 2:18 “For
through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.”
and again in Eph 6:18 “Praying always with all prayer and
supplication in the Spirit,” Jude says that we should be “building up
yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost.” Jude
1:20 Because we are sons of God, He has “sent forth the Spirit of
his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.” Ga 4:6
Jesus made the way and the Spirit strengthens us that we may
approach the Father in a personal and intimate relationship.
3. We pray to our Spiritual Father.
Father”
“unto (eis) him The
When Jesus taught us to pray He said, “When ye pray, say, Our
Father.” Lk 11:2 Paul taught us that the Spirit enables us to be
crying out to our Father. “For ye have not received the spirit of
bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption,
whereby we cry, Abba, Father.” Rom 8:15 We are to approach Him
as our Daddy, whom we love and Who loves us dearly, just as an
earthly Father love his little child.
We are not just servants, we are children and friends “No longer do
I call you servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth:
but I have called you friends; for all things that I heard from my
Father, I have made known unto you. Ye did not choose me, but I
chose you, and appointed you, that ye should go and bear fruit, and
that your fruit should abide: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the
Father in my name, he may give it you.” John 15:15-16
Jesus made the way and the Spirit strengthens us that we may
approach the Father in a personal and intimate relationship.
John chapters 14 -16 teach that we have an interacting relationship
with all three members of the Trinity. This is especially true in the
exercise of prayer.
“In the prayer meeting, as nowhere else, are Christian graces thus
brought together with powerful reactionary and reflective forces.”
The Prayer Meeting and Its History, J. B. Johnston
God moves in a mysterious way
His wonders to perform;
He plants His footsteps in the sea,
And rides upon the storm.
Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take;
The clouds ye so much dread
Are filled with mercies, and shall break
In blessings ’round thy head.
Trinitarian Sanctification
Sanctification means to be set apart, from the ordinary or
commonplace. Set apart and to a specific purpose and different
purpose.
All three members of the Trinity are specified to have a part in our
sanctification.
“Sanctified by God the Father.”
Jude 1:1-2 “From Jude, a slave of Jesus Christ and brother of
James, to those who are called, wrapped in the love of God the
Father and kept for Jesus Christ. 2 May mercy, peace, and love be
lavished on you!”
“Sanctified in Christ Jesus.”
1 Cor 1:2-4 “…to the church of God that is in Corinth, to those who
are sanctified in Christ Jesus, and called to be saints, with all those
in every place who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their
Lord and ours. 3 Grace and peace to you from God our Father
and the Lord Jesus Christ! 4 I always thank my God for you
because of the grace of God that was given to you in Christ Jesus.”
“Through sanctification of the Spirit.”
1 Pet 1:2-5 “From Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to those
temporarily residing abroad (in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia,
and Bithynia) who are chosen 2 according to the foreknowledge of
God the Father by being set apart by the Spirit for obedience and
for sprinkling with Jesus Christ’s blood. May grace and peace be
yours in full measure! 3 Blessed be the God and Father of our
Lord Jesus Christ! By his great mercy he gave us new birth into a
living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
4 that is, into an inheritance imperishable, undefiled, and unfading.
It is reserved in heaven for you, 5 who by God’s power are
protected through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the
last time.”
When we pray, we should acknowledge the members of the Trinity
in respect to their functions in our to God.
We should express gratitude for what each has accomplished for
us in our salvation.
Note that after each of the references to a member of the Trinity;
Jude, Paul, and Peter burst forth with prayer.
Jude 1:2 May mercy, peace, and love be lavished on you!
1 Cor 1:3 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the
Lord Jesus Christ!
1 Pet 1:3 blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!
By his great mercy he gave us new birth into a living hope through
the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
By The Father
We have been chosen in Christ by the Father. The Father chose or
elected us to have a special and personal relationship with us.
Hereby we are sanctified in Christ. This means that we were set
apart in and by the work of Christ Jesus. This was determined in
eternity past.
Our reaction should be to acknowledge to the Father, what has
been done for us and that it is not of ourselves. It is all by His
grace and all to His glory only. We should specifically express
thankfulness for having been set apart in Christ Jesus, eternally in
the plan of God and realized in the work of our Savior.
In The Son
We should speak directly to the Jesus and acknowledge that it is
His substituionary work that saves us and that our salvation is not
helped in any way by our cooperation or contribution.
We should give specific and personal thanks to Jesus for what He
has done.
Through The Spirit
We should speak directly to the Holy Spirit. Our text says,
“according to the foreknowledge of God the Father by being set
apart by the Spirit for obedience and for sprinkling with Jesus
Christ’s blood.”
Here are two aspects of the work of the Spirit:
1. The Basis. The Spirit has set us apart, sanctification, on the
basis of a previously determined relationship, which was
determined by the Father. This pre time fact determines to whom
the Spirit applies the benefits of the work of Christ Jesus. Even
before we were saved, the Holy Spirit had us targeted for His work
of sanctification. We should pray to the Holy Spirit to help us
cooperate with His work in us.
2. The Objective. Obedience and sprinkling or application of the
blood. It is the work of the Spirit that brings the child of God into
obedience and submission to the will of God. It is the sprinkling
with Christ’s blood that keeps us, that cleanses us, from our sin. As
it was in the Levitical days, the continual application of the typical
blood of sacrifice was needed, so now we need the continual
application of the blood of Christ. Whether it is sins of
commission(transgression) or sins of omission(missing the mark),
we need to ask the Holy Spirit to apply the blood of Christ that we
may stay in fellowship with God.
The Trinity coordinated their work in their gracious acts for us. This
Divine teamwork is more glorious than we can comprehend.
Spurgeon said “In their love towards the chosen they are one, and
in the actions which flow from that great central source they are still
undivided.”
Eph 1:10 we are “his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto
good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in
them.”
Let us pray that we can live is such a lifestyle as to manifest the
work of the Triune God in us to His glory.
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The Attributes of God in Prayer
When we pray we need to keep in mind the nature of our God. He
is infinite in all His attributes and for all eternity we will be exploring
what He is really like. Following is a listing of some of the attributes
of God. Perhaps we should thank and praise God for each of these
and for being the God that He is. “We shall find every attribute of
God Most High to be, as it were, a great battering-ram, with which
we may open the gates of heaven.” C. H. Spurgeon
The Bounties of God
Isa 64:4 “For from of old they have not
heard nor perceived by ear, neither has
the eye seen a God besides Thee, Who acts in behalf of the one
who waits for Him.”
The Faithfulness of God Deut 7:9 “Know therefore that the Lord
your God, He is God, the faithful God, who keeps His covenant and
His lovingkindness to a thousandth generation with those who love
Him and keep His commandments;”
The Foreknowledge of God
Rom 8:29 “For whom He
foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image
of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren; ”
The Grace of God
Rom 5:21 “…even so grace might reign
through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord”
The Goodness of God
Lord…”
Ps 25:8 “Good and upright is the
The Holiness of God
Rev 15:4 “Who, will not fear, O
Lord, and glorify Thy name? For Thou alone art holy; For all the
nations will come and worship before…”
The Immutability of God Mal 3:6 “For I, the Lord, do not change;
therefore you, O sons of Jacob, are not consumed.”
The Justice of God
Ps 89:14 “Righteousness and
justice are the foundation of Thy throne...”
The Knowledge of God
Ps 147:5 “His understanding is infinite”
The Love of God
Rom 5:8 “But God demonstrates His
own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died
for us.”
The Loving-Kindness of God Ps 36:7 “How precious is Thy
lovingkindness, O God! And the children of men take refuge in the
shadow of Thy wings.”
The Mercy of God
Lord…”
Ps 119:156 “Great are Thy mercies, O
T he Omnipresence of God
Ps 139: “Where can I go from
Thy Spirit? Or where can I flee from Thy presence?”
The Power of God
Ps 62:11 “…power belongs to God”
The Solitariness of God Ex 15:11 “Who is like Thee among the
gods, O Lord? Who is like Thee, majestic in holiness, Awesome in
praises, working wonders?”
The Sovereignty of God Is 46:10 “For I am God, and there is
none other; I am God, and there is no one like Me, Declaring the
end from the beginning And from ancient times things which have
not been done, Saying, ‘My purpose will be established, And I will
accomplish all My good pleasure.’”
The Wisdom of God
Rom 11:33 “Oh, the depth of the
riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! ”
The Wrath of God
Rom 1:18 “For the wrath of God is
revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness
of men…”
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To Whom Should We Pray?
Answer: The Lord God of the Holy Scriptures is the only God to
whom we should pray. The Scriptures are the 66 books of the
Christian Bible, beginning with Genesis and ending with Revelation.
If you agree with this answer then another question arises. Since
the God of the Bible is revealed as a Triune God, that is a God of
three persons: “The Father” “The Son” and “The Spirit;” we now
have to ask, “Which of the persons in God do we pray to.” We
need to remember that prayer is more than asking. It is asking for
things inclusively but not exclusively. Prayer includes praise,
worship, and expression of thankfulness.
The last verse in second Corinthians is “The grace of the Lord
Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy
Spirit, be with you all.” 2 Cor 13:14 Paul is giving his benediction
in the form of a Trinitarian blessing. Each member of the Trinity
has a unique relation to the believer and we should pray to each
member of the Trinity in respect of His uniqueness
I. Prayer to the Father that loves us, “the love of God.” 2 Cor
13:14
Our Lord give us instruction to pray to the Father in Mat 6:9 “Pray,
then, in this way: ‘Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your
name.” We are to show honor and respect for our Father.
John identifies us as children in 1 Joh 3:1 “See how great a love the
Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of
God; and such we are.” We really are children and should ask for
the things that a child would ask of his Father.
“Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son
into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” Gal 4:6 We are to pray to
our Father with lively feelings and an in an intimate relationship.
We are to acknowledge His love for us and live our lives as an
expression of our love for Him.
II. Prayer to the Son that gives us undeserved blessing, “the
grace of the Lord Jesus Christ.” 2 Cor 13:14
It wasn’t the Father that laid down His life for us. “We know love by
this, that He laid down His life for us.” 1 Joh 3:16 we must
express our love and appreciation to Jesus for giving His life for us.
We should never tire of saying to Jesus, that is, praying to Jesus
“Thank you Jesus for dying for me.” If we can talk to the Father we
can talk to Jesus.
We have been called into fellowship with Jesus. “God is faithful,
through whom you were called into fellowship with His Son, Jesus
Christ our Lord.” 1 Co 1:9 Prayer is that fellowship. Fellowship is
sharing what we have in common. When we talk with Jesus about
what He has done for us and how much we appreciate it and love
Him, we are in fellowship with Him.
Jesus is simultaneously our Prophet, our Priest, and our King. We
have communion with him as our Prophet, He teaches us by his
Spirit. We consider him as our High Priest who is our advocate and
intercessor with the Father, and we put our petitions into His hands,
to be offered up by Him, perfumed with the much incense of His
mediation. We acknowledge Him as our King and submit to His
government. We seek the coming of His kingdom in all its power
and sovereignty.
Saints have such communion and fellowship with Christ in His
offices, that we have in some sense a share in them; that is, we are
made by Him prophets, priests, and kings; prophets to teach and
instruct others, and kings and priests unto God and his Father.
“And from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the
dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us
and released us from our sins by His blood and He has made us to
be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father—to Him be the glory
and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.” Rev 1:5,6 this gives us
great need to pray to and fellowship with Jesus.
III. Prayer to the Spirit that has been sent to us, “and the
fellowship of the Holy Spirit.” 2 Cor 13:14
True praying is in the power of the Holy Spirit. “In the same way the
Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as
we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings
too deep for words.” Rom 8:26 it seems very reasonable to ask
the Holy Spirit to do what He has come to do and what we must
have Him to do for us.
When we need guidance we should claim the ministry of the Holy
Spirit and ask for His guidance. “But when He, the Spirit of truth,
comes, He will guide you into all the truth.” Joh 16:13
The Holy Spirit was sent to be our helper, one who strengthens us.
“I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He
may be with you forever.” Joh 14:16 so we pray to Him for the
strength we need to serve God.
“Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us”
Rom 12:6 We should pray to the Holy Spirit to help us know and
use our gift.
In Galatians we have named the fruit of the Spirit, “the fruit of the
Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness,
faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no
law.” Gal 5:22,23 These things should be objects of prayer and
since they are produced by the Spirit we should ask the Spirit to
produce them and cultivate them in us.
Since “the Spirit also helps our weakness, for we do not know how
to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with
groanings too deep for words” Rom 8:26 it is entirely appropriate for
us to ask the Spirit to help us in our prayer life.
Since He is the Spirit of adoption, we can pray to Him to make us to
be good children. We “have received a spirit of adoption as sons
by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!” Rom 8:15
Let’s not forget that we are praying to a tri-person God. We have
not begun to understand the infinite and Divine riches we have in
having a God like our God.
It might be good if we were to segment our prayer time (personal or
corporate), isolating specified times to pray to and communion with
each person of the Trinity.
What wond’rous grace! who knows its full extent?
A creature, dust and ashes, speaks with God-Tells all his woes, enumerates his wants,
Yea, pleads with Deity, and gains relief.
’Tis prayer, yes, ’tis ‘effectual, fervent prayer,’
Puts dignity on worms, proves life divine,
Makes demons tremble, breaks the darkest cloud,
And with a princely power prevails with God!
And shall this privilege become a task?
My God, forbid! Pour out thy Spirit's grace,
Draw me by love, and teach me how to pray.
Yea, let Thy holy unction from above
Beget, extend, maintain my intercourse
with Father, Son, and Spirit, Israel’s God,
Until petitions are exchanged for praise
Irons.
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Praying to an Omniscient God
“Compel yourself often to shape on your lips the detailed needs of your
soul. It is not needful to inform God, but to deepen you, to inform yourself
before God, to enrich that intimacy with ourself which is so necessary to
answer the intimacy of God. To common sense the fact that God knows
all we need, and wills us all good, the fact of His infinite Fatherhood, is a
reason for not praying. Why tell Him what He knows? Why ask what He is
more than willing to give? But to Christian faith and to spiritual reason it is
just the other way. Asking is polar cooperation. Jesus turned the fact to a
use exactly the contrary of its deistic sense. He made the all-knowing
Fatherhood the ground of true prayer. We do not ask as beggars but as
children. Petition is not mere receptivity, nor is it mere pressure; it is filial
reciprocity. Love loves to be told what it knows already. Every lover
knows that. It wants to be asked for what it longs to give. And that is the
principle of prayer to the all-knowing Love. As God knows all, you may
reckon that your brief and humble prayer will be understood (Matt. vi. 8).
It will be taken up into the intercession of the Spirit stripped of its dross,
its inadequacy made good, and presented as prayer should be. That is
praying in the Holy Ghost. Where should you carry your burden but to the
Father, where Christ took the burden of all the world? We tell God, the
heart searcher, our heavy thoughts to escape from brooding over them.
"When my spirit was overwhelmed within me, Thou knewest my path."
(Ps. cxlii. 3). So Paul says the Spirit intercedes for us and gives our
broken prayer divine effect (Rom. viii. 26). To be sure of God's sympathy
is to be inspired to prayer, where His mere knowledge would crush it.
There is no father who would be satisfied that his son should take
everything and ask for nothing. It would be thankless. To cease asking is
to cease to be grateful. And what kills petition kills praise.” The Soul of
Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
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b. Praying to the Father
Father Praying
A Rhetorical Survey
How do we Christians begin our prayers?
What have you noticed as to how others begin their prayer?
How to you begin your prayer?
Probably the most used word or reference in the beginning of our
prayers is "Father."
A Father is the conceiver of life.
A Father is the Supplier of the necessities of life.
A Father is authority of life.
In the spiritual world the Father offers the ultimate relationship of
life.
Prayer is the exercise of a relationship.
When a child of 2-5 years of age wants to talk, relate, to his parents
it simply talks, In it’s own childlike way. The child does not reason
within itself, since I can not talk like my parents or as good as my
older brother or sister I will not talk until I am able to talk in a proper
way. This is not at all the case. The child begins to talk before he
or she has any ability at all, it is the effort that produces the ability.
Do parents encourage the child to wait until it is able to try to talk?
Not a chance of that, the parent is greatly blest by the child like
efforts to communicate. This is one of the most memorable things
of childhood.
Some Christians refuse to pray, especially in public, because they
feel inadequate. The fact of the matter is, all of us, spiritually young
or spiritually mature, are inadequate in God’s sight.
Jesus taught us how to pray by Lip and by Life.
Lip
Mat 6:5,6 When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they
love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so
that they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward
in full. But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door
and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what
is done in secret will reward you.
Luke 11:1-4 It happened that while Jesus was praying in a certain
place, after He had finished, one of His disciples said to Him, "Lord,
teach us to pray just as John also taught his disciples." And He
said to them, "When you pray, say: 'Father, hallowed be Your
name. Your kingdom come. 'Give us each day our daily bread.
'And forgive us our sins, For we ourselves also forgive everyone
who is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation.'"
Joh 16:23,24,26 “In that day you will not question Me about
anything. Truly, truly, I say to you, if you ask the Father for anything
in My name, He will give it to you. Until now you have asked for
nothing in My name; ask and you will receive, so that your joy may
be made full. In that day you will ask in My name, and I do not say
to you that I will request of the Father on your behalf.”
Life
Mat 26:39 And He went a little beyond them, and fell on His face
and prayed, saying, "My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass
from Me; yet not as I will, but as You will."
Joh 14:16,23 “And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you
another Comforter, that he may be with you for ever,...
Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep
my word: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him,
and make our abode with him.”
Paul teaches us the same truth, we are to pray to our Father.
As we cry “Abba Father” the Spirit makes Himself know. “The Spirit
himself bears witness with our spirit, that we are children of God:”
Rom 8:16
Eph 3:14-21 For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father, 15
from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, 16 that
he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, that ye may
be strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inward man; 17
that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; to the end that
ye, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may be strong to
apprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and
height and depth,19 and to know the love of Christ which passes
knowledge, that ye may be filled unto all the fulness of God. 20
Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that
we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, 21 unto
him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus unto all
generations for ever and ever. Amen.
Conclusion
When Jesus taught the disciples to pray, “He said to them, when
you pray, say: Father...” Luk 11:2 He was teaching us to come to
God as a father, that is on the grounds of a father child relationship.
Jesus goes on in the lesson to reinforce the reasonableness of
treating God as our Father. We can safely expect that God will be
a better, more loving, kind, and gentle Heavenly Father than any
earthly father. Our Heavenly Father is not limited in the good that
He can do for us. Earthly fathers many time agonize to do better for
their children but not our heavenly father.
Jesus did not put His faith in His prayers or in the faith of his
prayers. His strength came from the relationship that he had with
His Father.
No true God could promise us an answer to our every prayer. No
Father of mankind could. The rain that saved my crop might ruin my
neighbour's. It would paralyse prayer to be sure that it would prevail
as it is offered, certainly and at once. We should be terrified at the
power put into our foolish hands. Nothing would do more to cure us
of a belief in our own wisdom than the granting of some of our
eager prayers. We must trust the wisdom of a loving Father to
answer our prayer as He determines best.
Sweet hour of prayer, sweet hour of prayer,
That calls me from a world of care,
And bids me at my Father’s throne,
Make all my wants and wishes known!
In seasons of distress and grief,
My soul has often found relief,
And oft escaped the tempter’s snare
By thy return, sweet hour of prayer.
c. Praying and The Son
Praying in the Name of Christ
Praying in Jesus’ name is not just saying the words “in Jesus’
name” or “in Christ’s name” in our prayers, nor closing our prayers
with these words. Some think that their prayer would be ineffective
without this phrase attached at the end. The words are not magical
nor a secret pass code or an expression that especially gets God’s
attention. Never do we find a command to say “in Jesus name” in
our prayers. The only time this idea is used is in Eph 5:19-20
“always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus
Christ to God, even the Father.” Here Paul is giving directions as to
how the Ephesian church should conduct itself.
“In John 14-16 ‘in my name’ is used in connection with prayer in
three different ways. First, there are reverences to asking the
Father in Jesus’ name:... ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, if you ask the
Father for anything in My name, He will give it to you.’ 16:23...
Second, one text refers to asking Jesus himself in Jesus’ name
...’If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it.’ 14:14. Third,
there’s a statement that the Father gives answers to prayer ‘in
Jesus’ name’: ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, if you ask the Father for
anything in My name, He will give it to you. ‘In My name’...Taken
together the three groups of verses show that in my name
somehow conditions prayer offered to both the Father and the Lord
Jesus.” The God Who Hears, Bingham Hunter, p 193 Three things
are done in Jesus name: 1.We ask the Father, 2. We ask Jesus
Himself, 3. The Father gives. Surely this is something more basic
than a simple formula. The context is John 14-16 and is our Lord’s
final discourse where He is giving them their last instruction in
spiritual things.
To pray in the name we must be abiding in a living
relationship. When Jesus was on earth His command was “Follow
me...” now while He is temporarily in Heaven the command is
“Abide in me...” Abiding in Christ is a spiritual relationship that we
have with Jesus, also the Father and the Spirit. It is based in the
fact that we are redeemed by the precious blood of Christ and
regenerated by the Holy Spirit so as to be holy in His sight and alive
with a love for God.
Just as the branch of a vine or tree cannot bear fruit by itself so we
cannot be fruitful unless we abide; that is stay in communion with
our vine Jesus. Not to abide has serious consequences (Jn 15:6),
but to abide makes us fruitful and we have the promise, “If you
abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish
and it will be done for you” Jn 15:7 We cannot ask in Jesus’ name
if we are not abiding in Jesus. So the condition of asking in Jesus’
name, and getting whatsoever we ask, is abiding in Him.
To pray in the name we must be abiding in the Triune God.
Jesus references each member of the Trinity: “If anyone loves Me,
he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will
come to him, and make Our abode with him...But the Helper, the
Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach
you all things...”14:23-25. “In the same way the Spirit also helps
our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but
the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for
words.” Rom 8:26
In chapter 15:7 Jesus says, “If you abide in Me, and My words
abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.” In
chapter 16:23,24 Jesus says: “Truly, truly, I say to you, if you ask
the Father for anything in My name, He will give it to you. Until now
you have asked for nothing in My name; ask and you will receive,
so that your joy may be made full.”
To pray in the name we must be abiding in obedience. The
context of Jn 14-16 seems abundantly clear that asking “in Jesus’
name” is a command for the child of God who is in obedience and
fellowship with Father, Son and Holy Spirit. This is what abiding in
Christ is, living in obedience and communing with our God. When
we live like this, our hearts are close to God’s and we can’t bear the
thought of doing anything displeasing to Him. Our wills are
surrendered to Him and we cannot want anything but His will, and
when we pray we can ask what ever we want and He will do it.
When one thinks of the benefits of such an intimate life with God, it
doesn’t seem like a sacrifice at all. Before God ever answers a
prayer we are so immensely blest that we accept what ever He
does.
“The name represents the person; to ask in the Name is to ask in
full union of interest and life and love with Himself, as one who lives
in and for Him....when the Name of Jesus has become the power
that rules my life, its power in prayer with God will be seen too...It is
not to the lips but to the life God looks to see what the Name is to
us....‘in my Name’ has its own safeguard. It is a spiritual power
which no one can use further than he obtains the capacity for, by
his living and acting in that Name...O come, and let us learn to pray
in the Name of Jesus...O awake, and use the name of Jesus to
open the treasures of heaven for this perishing world ” With Christ
in the School of Prayer, Andrew Murrary, p 191-2.
“To pray in the Name of Christ is to pray as one who is at one with
Christ, whose mind is the mind of Christ, whose desires are the
desires of Christ, and whose purpose is one with that of
Christ...prayers offered in the name of Christ are scrutinized and
sanctified by His nature, His purpose, and His will. Prayer is
endorsed by the Name, when it is in harmony with the character,
mind, desire, and purpose of the Name.”
Samuel Chadwick
Prayer is going into the secret place of the Most High and abiding
under the shadow of the Almighty. Ps 91:1
++++++++++++++++++++
Jesus Teaching on Prayer
“He was praying in a certain place, and when he ceases, one of his
disciples said to him, ‘Lord teach us to pray, as John taught his
disciples’” Luke 11:1 Some have said that prayer cannot be taught,
it must be learned by experience. Jesus said nothing like this.
When asked to teach prayer, He immediately began to do so in
Luke 11:1-13.
Jesus is the Greatest Teacher
Jesus identified Himself as a “Teacher”. Today we hype the
“Preacher,” “Pastor,” and “Evangelist” but seldom do we recognize
the “Teacher.” Human nature goes for show more than know.
Jesus was the greatest teacher.He taught both by lip and life. His
life was one that frequently sent Him into seclusion. He was seen
on His knees and He allowed Himself to be heard; for example, the
intercessory prayer in John 17. He was qualified most by His Holy
character. He knew His subject and His students completely and
accurately. In the great commission Jesus said “Go therefore and
make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the
Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe
all that I commanded you...” Ma 28:19,20 He commanded
“...that at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart.” Luke
18:1 So we are expected to teach the subject of prayer. Parents
teach children, pastors teach members, mature believers teach
young believers.
Jesus taught the Greatest Lessons
We must be sincere, and not have vain motives. Mat 6:5 “When
you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to
stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that
they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their
reward in full.”
We must be humble. Luke 18:9-14 “And He also told this parable
to some people who trusted in themselves that they were righteous,
and viewed others with contempt: Two men went up into the temple
to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee
stood and was praying this to himself: ‘God, I thank You that I am
not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this
tax collector. I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get.’ But
the tax collector, standing some distance away, was even unwilling
to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying,
‘God, be merciful to me, the sinner!’ I tell you, this man went to his
house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts
himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be
exalted.”
We must abide in Him. Jn 15:7 “If you abide in Me, and My words
abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.”
We must obey Him. Jn 14:14,15 “If you ask Me anything in My
name, I will do it. If you love Me, you will keep My
commandments.”
We must have faith. Mark 11:24 “Therefore I say to you, all things
for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them,
and they will be granted you.”
We must be right with our brother. Mat 5:23,24 “Therefore if
you are presenting your offering at the altar, and there remember
that your brother has something against you leave your offering
there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother,
and then come and present your offering.”
We must have persistence. Luke 11:5-10 “ Then He said to
them, ‘Suppose one of you has a friend, and goes to him at
midnight and says to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves; for a friend
of mine has come to me from a journey, and I have nothing to set
before him’; and from inside he answers and says, ‘Do not bother
me; the door has already been shut and my children and I are in
bed; I cannot get up and give you anything.’ I tell you, even though
he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend,
yet because of his persistence he will get up and give him as much
as he needs. So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek,
and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone
who asks, receives; and he who seeks, finds; and to him who
knocks, it will be opened.”
We must have privacy. Mat 6.6 “But you, when you pray, go into
your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in
secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward
you.”
Prayer is the Greatest Experience
It has been said that “Theology is the Queen of the Sciences,” if
that be so then “Prayer is the Queen of the Experiences.” What
could be greater than a personal audience with the sovereign and
holy creator of the universe.
What wond’rous grace! who knows its full extent?
A creature, dust and ashes, speaks with God--
Tells all his woes, enumerates his wants,
Yea, pleads with Deity, and gains relief.
’Tis prayer, yes, ’tis ‘effectual, fervent prayer,’
Puts dignity on worms, proves life divine,
Makes demons tremble, breaks the darkest cloud,
And with a princely power prevails with God!
And shall this privilege become a task?
My God, forbid! Pour out thy Spirit's grace,
Draw me by love, and teach me how to pray.
Yea, let Thy holy unction from above
Beget, extend, maintain my intercourse
with Father, Son, and Spirit, Israel’s God,
Until petitions are exchanged for praise
Irons.
If Jesus, the perfect God - Man, felt the need of prayer, how much
greater is our need for a prayer life.
++++++++++++++++++++
Jesus Teaches on Corporate and Answered Prayer
In Mark 11:15-25 our Lord gives some teaching on prayer: “Then
they came to Jerusalem. Jesus entered the temple area and
began to drive out those who were selling and buying in the temple
courts. He turned over the tables of the moneychangers and the
chairs of those selling doves, 16 and he would not permit anyone
to carry merchandise through the temple courts. 17 Then he began
to teach them and said, ‘Is it not written: My house will be called a
house of prayer for all nations’? But you have turned it into a
den of robbers!’ 18 The chief priests and the experts in the law
heard it and they considered how they could assassinate him, for
they feared him because the whole crowd was amazed by his
teaching. 19 When evening came, they went out of the city. 20 In
the morning as they passed by, they saw the fig tree withered from
the roots. 21 Peter remembered and said to him, ‘Rabbi, look! The
fig tree you cursed has withered.’ 22 Jesus said to them, ‘Have
faith in God. 23 I tell you the truth, if someone says to this
mountain, Be lifted up and thrown into the sea, and does not doubt
in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be
done for him. 24 For this reason I tell you, whatever you pray and
ask for, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. 25
Whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone,
forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may also forgive you
your sins.’”
1. Corporately -- A Rebuke v 17
Jesus rebukes the religious leaders for misusing God’s house.
They had made God’s house an instrument for their own profit. He
called them robbers and told them that God’s house was to be a
house of prayer for all peoples. The one word that should
characterize the people of God is “prayer.” The place where God’s
people gather is not to be called a “house of preaching” or “a house
of singing” or “a house of fellowship” or a house of anything else.
The will of our Lord Jesus must be honored in the way we do
Church. It is not to be used as one sees fit or for a select group but
for all nations. The plan for God’s house, we know as the local
church, is not limited to the Jews but has always been intended for
all nations. We should not just have a prayer meeting but be a real
prayer meeting that has God’s presence manifested and that any
genuine Christian can feel a part of.
Our Lord gives us two requirements for answered prayer.
2. Vertically -- Faith toward God. v 22- 24
Faith is conviction or persuasion that something is true. The only
way we can know God and truth is for Him to reveal Himself to us.
We need to reason backwards, from effect to cause: 1. Faith is
necessary to answered prayer. 2. Faith comes from God. 3. We
must first go to God for faith. 4. Faith determines what we pray for.
Our basic prayer should be, “God show us Yourself and what we
should pray for.
“Have faith in God” in v 22 is a present tense verb meaning to be
having, we should be holding on to as our possession, faith in God.
Peter refers to his reader as “those who through the righteousness
of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ, have been granted a faith just
as precious as ours.” 2 Pet 1:1
In v 24 we have four present tense verbs and one future tense verb
“whatever you pray and ask for, believe that you have received it,
and it will be yours.” This teaches us that a life of consistent and
continuous believing prayer will result in having what we ask for.
“And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye
shall receive.” Mat 21:22
3. Horizontally -- Forgiveness toward man. v 25
Forgiveness of our brother or neighbor is necessary for God to
answer our prayer. Jesus said “Whenever you stand praying.”
Could this be a reference to corporate prayer when one stands to
pray so the others can join in? If this is the case, then this
exhortation is directed toward corporate prayer, the very thing He
rebuked the people for not having. He continues in v 25 “If you
have anything against anyone forgive him.” Before the one praying
can ask for forgiveness of his own sin against God, he must forgive
the one that has sinned against him. Neither our private nor our
corporate prayer life can prosper when we have an unforgiving
spirit towards those that have done us wrong.
Yes, they don’t deserve it but, then, neither do we deserve God’s
forgiveness. God wants us to follow His example or in Peter’s
words “partake of the Divine nature” 2 Peter 1:4 and forgive others
that do not deserve to be forgiven as He has forgiven us. Not to do
so has serious implications, even to the point of bringing the fact of
our salvation into question. “So that your Father in heaven may also
forgive you your sins.” Anyone who understands the great need we
have for forgiveness from an infinitely holy and sovereign God will
not risk losing it by not forgiving others. A person that will not
forgive his neighbor evidences that he does not understand
forgiveness and does not possess God’s forgiveness for himself.
“Evidently God's willingness to forgive is limited by our willingness
to forgive others. This is a solemn thought for all who pray. Recall
the words of Jesus in Mat 6:12,14,15 “and forgive us our debts, as
we ourselves have forgiven our debtors…14 For if you forgive
others their sins, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But
if you do not forgive others, your Father will not forgive you your
sins.” A.T. Robertson
Our relationship to others is important enough that we should make
it a specific matter of prayer that we ask God to reveal to us any
relationship or attitude that would hinder our praying, especially in
relation to the corporate prayer meeting. We will not have the
manifest presence of God in our meetings when we have
unforgiving attitudes to our brothers.
NET
++++++++++++++++++++
d. Praying and the Holy Spirit
How the Spirit Enables Us to Pray
by Thomas Boston (revised)
It is by the help of the Holy Spirit that we are able to pray: Gal 4:6,
"And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His
Son into your hearts, crying out, ‘Abba, Father!’" Rom 8:26,
"Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not
know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself
makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered."
There Are Two Kinds of Prayers.
First, A prayer that is the result of one’s own knowledge and gift of
utterance. This is bestowed on many reprobates, and that gift may
be useful to others, and to the church. But as it is merely of that
sort, it is not accepted, nor does Christ put it in before the Father for
acceptance.
Secondly, There is a prayer brought about in men by the work of
the Holy Spirit, Zech. 12:10, "And I will pour on the house of David
and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and
supplication," and that is the only acceptable prayer to God. James
5:16, "Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one
another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a
righteous man avails much." The word "effective" is from the Greek
word "inwrought." Right praying is praying in the Spirit. It is a gale
blowing from heaven, the breathing of the Spirit in the saints, that
carries them out in the prayer, and which comes the length to the
throne of God Himself.
Spirit Helps Us to Pray Two Ways
1. As a teaching and instructing Spirit, furnishing proper matter
of prayer, causing us to know what we pray for, Rom. 8:26,
enlightening the mind to understand our needs, and those of others
that we should pray for. The Spirit brings to our remembrance these
things, suggesting them to us according to the Word, together with
the promises of God, on which prayer is grounded, John 14:26,
"But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My
name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance
all things that I said to you." It is normal for the Spirit to lead the
saints to pray for things they had known of but sometimes the
saints are carried out in prayer for things which they had no view of
before.
2. As a quickening, exciting Spirit, Rom. 8:26, “...the Spirit also
helps in our weaknesses.” or enables or qualifies the soul with
praying graces and affections, working in the praying person a
sense of needs, faith, fervency, humility, urgency etc. Psa 10:17,
"Lord, You have heard the desire of the humble; You will prepare
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their heart; You will cause Your ear to hear," God helps us bring to
Him the prayer He can answer.
The man may go to his knees in a very unprepared attitude for
prayer, yet the Spirit blows and he is helped. It is for this reason the
Spirit is said to make intercession for us, namely, in so far as he
teaches and quickens, puts us in a praying frame of mind, and
draws out our petitions, as it were, putting them into the language
which the Mediator presents.
Special Giftedness in Prayer?
This praying with the help of the Spirit is particular to the saints, yet
they do not have that help at all times, nor always in the same
measure; for sometimes the Spirit, being grieved, departs, and they
are left in a withered condition. So there is great need for a
breathing and filling of the Spirit, when we are to go to the duty of
prayer. If there isn’t a gale blowing in the sails, we will tug at the
oars but heartlessly and with little result.
Let no man think that a readiness and flowing of expression in
prayer, is always the effect of the Spirit's assistance. For that may
be the product of a gift, and of the common operations of the Spirit,
removing the impediment of the exercise of it. On the other hand it
is evident one may be scarce of words, and have groans instead of
them, while the Spirit helps him to pray, Rom. 8:26. Neither is every
flood of emotions in prayer, the effect of the Spirit of prayer. There
are of those which puff up a man, but make him never a whit more
holy, tender in his walk, etc. But the influences of the Spirit are
humbling and sanctifying. Hence, says David, "But who am I, and
who are my people, That we should be able to offer so willingly as
this? For all things come from You, and of Your own we have given
You," 1 Chr 29:14; and, says the apostle, "We have no confidence
in the flesh," Phil. 3:3.
All true prayer is exercised in the sphere of the Holy Spirit,
motivated and empowered by Him. Eph 6:18
But it is the Holy Spirit of God Who is prayer’s great Helper.
Kneeling Christian
The
It is when we have failed and know not “what prayers to offer” or “in
what way,” that the Holy Spirit is promised as our Helper. The
Kneeling Christian
Come, Holy Spirit, come;Let Thy bright beams arise;Dispel the
darkness from our minds,And open all our eyes.
Convince us of our sin;Then lead to Jesus' blood,And to our
wondering view reveal The secret love of God.
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++++++++++++++++++++
“Praying in the Holy Ghost.”
“But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith,
praying in the Holy Ghost,” Jude 20
Rom 8:26,27 “And in like manner the Spirit also helpeth our
infirmity: for we know not how to pray as we ought; but the Spirit
himself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be
uttered; and he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind
of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints
according to the will of God.”
Mark the grand characteristic of true prayer—'In the Holy Ghost.'
“The seed of acceptable devotion must come from heaven's
storehouse. Only the prayer which comes from God can go to
God. We must shoot the Lord's arrows back to Him. That desire
which He writes upon our heart will move His heart and bring down
a blessing, but the desires of the flesh have no power with Him.
Praying in the Holy Ghost is praying in fervency. Cold prayers
ask the Lord not to hear them. Those who do not plead with
fervency, plead not at all. As well speak of lukewarm fire as of
lukewarm prayer—it is essential that it be red hot. It is praying
perseveringly. The true suppliant gathers force as he proceeds, and
grows more fervent when God delays to answer. The longer the
gate is closed, the more vehemently does he use the knocker, and
the longer the angel lingers the more resolved is he that he will
never let him go without the blessing. Beautiful in God's sight is
tearful, agonizing, unconquerable importunity. It means praying
humbly, for the Holy Spirit never puffs us up with pride. It is His
office to convince of sin, and so to bow us down in contrition and
brokenness of spirit. We shall never sing Gloria in excelsis except
we pray to God De profundis: out of the depths must we cry, or we
shall never behold glory in the highest. It is loving prayer. Prayer
should be perfumed with love, saturated with love—love to our
fellow saints, and love to Christ. Moreover, it must be a prayer
full of faith. A man prevails only as he believes. The Holy Spirit is
the author of faith, and strengthens it, so that we pray believing
God's promise. O that this blessed combination of excellent graces,
priceless and sweet as the spices of the merchant, might be
fragrant within us because the Holy Ghost is in our hearts! Most
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blessed Comforter, exert Thy mighty power within us, helping our
infirmities in prayer.” (Morning & Evening, C.H. Spurgeon October
8 PM)
Lu 11:13 “If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto
your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the
Holy Spirit to them that ask (keep asking) him?”
Eph 1:13 “In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of
truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye
believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,”
++++++++++++++++++++
How does the Spirit Help us in Prayer
Jesus said “And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you
another Comforter, that he may be with you for ever, ...But the
Comforter, even the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my
name, he shall teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance
all that I said unto you.” John 14:16, 26
The word “comforter” means “a helper, succourer, aider, assistant”
There isn’t any place where we need help more than in the place of
prayer. This is true both in our closet prayer life and in our
corporate or group prayer experience. When Jesus answered the
disciples request “Lord, teach us to pray,” He climaxed His answer
with “ how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy
Spirit to them that ask him?” The Holy Spirit us a variety of way to
help us in our prayer life.
1. He introduces us to the Presence of the Father.
Eph 2:14-18 “For he is our peace, who made both one, and brake
down the middle wall of partition, having abolished in the flesh the
enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances;
that he might create in himself of the two one new man, so making
peace; and might reconcile them both in one body unto God
through the cross, having slain the enmity thereby: and he came
and preached peace to you that were far off, and peace to them
that were nigh: for through him we both have our access in one
127
Spirit unto the Father.”
2. He overcomes our reluctance, working in us the desire to
pray.
Zech 12:9-10 “And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek
to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. And I will
pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of
Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplication; and they shall
look unto me whom they have pierced; and they shall mourn for
him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for
him, as one that is in bitterness for his first-born.”
3. He imparts a sense of sonship and acceptance that creates
freedom and confidence in the presence of God. Gal 4:6 “And
because ye are sons, God sent forth the Spirit of his Son into our
hearts, crying, Abba, Father. So that thou art no longer a
bondservant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir through God.”
Rom 8:14-16 “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these
are sons of God. For ye received not the spirit of bondage again
unto fear; but ye received the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry,
Abba, Father. The Spirit himself beareth witness with our spirit,
that we are children of God:”
4. He helps us in the ignorance of our minds and infirmities of
our bodies so that we can pray as we ought. Rom 8:26 “And in
like manner the Spirit also helpeth our infirmity: for we know not
how to pray as we ought; but the Spirit himself maketh intercession
for us with groanings which cannot be uttered;”
5. He takes our imperfect prayers and puts them in a form
acceptable to our Heavenly Father.
Rom 8:27 “and he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the
mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints
according to the will of God.”
6. He lays special burdens of prayer on the believer who is
walking in fellowship with Him.
Dan 9:1-3 “In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of the
seed of the Medes, who was made king over the realm of the
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Chaldeans, in the first year of his reign I, Daniel, understood by the
books the number of the years whereof the word of Jehovah came
to Jeremiah the prophet, for the accomplishing of the desolations of
Jerusalem, even seventy years. And I set my face unto the Lord
God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting and
sackcloth and ashes.”
Principles and Practice of Prayer, Ivan French p 99.
Phil 2:13 “for it is God who worketh in you both to will and to
work, for his good pleasure.”
O watch and fight, and pray.
The battle ne'er give o'er.
Renew it boldly every day,
And help divine implore.
Ne'er think the victory won,
Nor lay thine armor down;
The work of faith will not be done,
Till thou obtain thy crown.
Fight on, my soul.....
George Heath
++++++++++++++++++++
The Cry of the Spirit: Abba Father
Gal 4:4-7 “But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth
His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, so that He might
redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the
adoption as sons. Because you are sons, God has sent forth the
Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba! Father!’ Therefore
you are no longer a slave, but a son; and if a son, then an heir
through God.”
There are only two other occurrences of “Abba Father” in the N.T.
The parallel passage in Rom 8:15 “For ye have not received the
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spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of
adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.” and in Mk 14:36 “And he
said, Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee; take away this
cup from me: nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt.”
The word adoption (whuiothesia) as sons is a compound word of
whuios son and thesis a placing and refers to a man's giving the
status of sonship to someone who is not his natural child. In the
Roman world adoption was an honored custom that gave special
dignity and family membership to those who were not born into a
family. Often a wealthy, childless man would adopt a young slave,
who would trade his slavery for sonship, with all its privileges. God
confirms believers as His adopted sons by giving the Holy Spirit,
the Spirit of His Son. A human Father cannot give his own nature
to an adopted child, but God can and does by sending His Holy
Spirit to dwell within the hearts of believers.
The word translated “cry” is krazo occurs 59 times and means: 1)
to croak, of the cry of a raven, hence, to cry out, cry aloud,
vociferate 2) to cry out aloud, speak with a loud voice. All 59
occurrences refer to a verbal and sometimes an unpleasant outcry.
This verse is not referring to an attitude or feeling of sonship, but
vocal and energetic expression of our heart’s feeling to God. This
has special significance to both our secret praying and corporate
praying. In both we should be verbal and audible.
Like the term “In Jesus Name” which is not a formula that we say at
the end of our prayer to make them more answerable, so the term
“Abba, Father” is not a term that we begin our prayers with that
sanctions what we are about to pray. “In Jesus Name” refers to the
authority in which we pray and “Abba, Father” refers to the
relationship in which we pray.
“Exhaustive research by biblical scholars-particularly I. Jeremias W.
Marchel-has demonstrated that in all the huge literature of ancient
Judaism there is not one instance of God being addressed in
prayer with the word abba. He was called ‘The Lord Almighty,’ ‘The
Holy One,’ ‘Sovereign of the World’ and many other exalted titles,
but a word like abba was too personal, too familiar and intimate to
be appropriate. The Lord was high and lifted up, the incomparable
One. He was to be approached with reverence and awe. To call
him ‘Daddy’ was unthinkable blasphemy. Yet Jesus prayed like this
all the time.” The God Who Hears, W. Bingham Hunter, p 97
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Prayer is the exercise of a relationship. When a child 3 years of age
wants to talk to his parents, he simply talks in his own childlike way.
The child does not reason within himself, since I can not talk like
my parents or as good as my older brother or sister I will not talk
until I am able to talk in a proper way. It is the relationship that
motivates the child to talk and then it is experience that produces
the ability. Do parents encourage the child to wait until he has
sufficient ability to talk? Not a chance of that, the parent is greatly
blest by the childlike efforts to communicate. This is one of the most
memorable things of childhood. So it is in our relationship with
God.
The Holy Spirit works in this crying, Abba Father, in two ways:
1. By inclining our wills and stirring our affections of love, faith,
and delight. Phil 2:13 “for it is God who is at work in you, both to
will and to work for His good pleasure.”
2. By enabling us to exercise these affections in vocal prayer, that
is speaking out of the abundance of the heart. We need both
aspects of this ministry of the Holy Spirit. Rom 8:26 “In the same
way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to
pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with
groanings too deep for words;”
He is acting in us, and we our acting by him. The act of “crying”, is
caused by the Holy Spirit though realized in the believers vocal
praying. He excites, encourages, and assists us to call God our
Father. This we experience in the secret internal crying of our soul
and of an open outward invocation of Him as our Father with much
confidence, freedom, and boldness.
“Abba represents the essentials of the new relationship with God
which Jesus offered men and women who believe on his name.
From the Father’s side, abba implies many things:
(1) his mercy, compassion and love for the child;
(2) his personal interest and consistent concern for its good;
(3) his willingness to provide the needs of and give protection to the
child; and
(4) the use of his mature knowledge, judgment and wisdom in
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guiding and caring for the child.
On the child’s lips, abba signifies:
(1) an implicit willingness to love, honor, and respect the Father;
(2) an awareness of dependency on the Father;
(3) a sense of confidence in the Father’s judgment and trust in his
integrity and abilities; and
(4) ready obedience to the Father’s desires and will, with
corresponding acceptance of the Father’s right and responsibility to
discipline for the child’s good,
In short, abba signifies the essence of what it means to have a
personal relationship with God.” The God Who Hears, W. Bingham
Hunter, p 98
This helps us understand the reason that our Lord in Lk 11:13 said
“If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your
children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy
Spirit to those who ask Him?”
++++++++++++++++++++
“The Spirit Himself intercedes for us with Groanings”
Rom 8:22-27 “For we know that the whole creation groans and
suffers the pains of childbirth together until now. And not only this,
but also we ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we
ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption
as sons, the redemption of our body. For in hope we have been
saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for who hopes for what he
already sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, with
perseverance we wait eagerly for it. In the same way the Spirit also
helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should,
but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for
words; and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of
the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the
will of God. The ultimate prayer experience to have the Holy Spirit
pray through us.”
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To “groan” here is “ to express grief by inarticulate or semiarticulate sounds” Note the three groanings in this context. Look at
them as three concentric circles. 1. v. 22 “the whole creation
groans” All parts of creation and especially humans, saint and
sinner, feel the effect of sin. 2. v 23 “even we ourselves groan
within ourselves” The child of God feels with greater intensity the
ravages of sin. 3. v 26 “the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with
groanings too deep for words” Seeing the first two groans explains
the phrase “in the same way” The creation groans, the believer
groans, and thirdly the join with us and groans. The praying child of
God has companionship and help in this groaning that
characterizes life in this world. A groan comes not from the lips but
from the heart. When we are praying in and with the Spirit it is from
our heart with great passion. The psalmist said “I am benumbed
and badly crushed; I groan because of the agitation of my heart.”
Ps 38:8
“The entire structure of the passage in the original shows that the
‘intercession’ of the Spirit is not aside from us, as that of our High
Priest; but that it is within us, mingling his energies with our own,
and thus bearing with us the burdens too heavy to be borne alone.
His work is entirely subjective, bringing the intercession of our Lord
above into the desires and petitions of the Christian below; whereby
they become the intercessions of the Spirit, who thus blends his
Advocacy with that of Christ himself.” Theology of Prayer, B.M.
Palmer, p 320
It is not that God needs us but that he desires to use us and our
praying. He is the first cause of all things and He also uses
secondary causes and means to accomplish His plan. In His
praying through us He quickens and uses our individual powers of
will, intellect, and affection. These are God’s infinitely loving
desires finding expression through finite and human channels.
In this process of groaning there will be leading out in prayer for
objects and person that otherwise would have been neglected,
such spirit of prayer will come upon us just as there is need, and
may sometimes even seem to be at the most unlikely time and
place. How limitless are the possibilities of prayer when we have
such a mighty, loving Helper! How certain we may be of the
answer when He breathes the prayer through us! What wonderful
fellowship this kind of prayer gives! We can only realize His ideal
for our prayer-life by abiding in Him, and trusting Him moment by
moment to pray through us with His own mighty intercessions.
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C.H. Spurgeon
“Though the infirmities of Christians are many and great, so that
they would be overpowered if left to themselves, yet the Holy Spirit
supports them. The Spirit, as an enlightening Spirit, teaches us
what to pray for; as a sanctifying Spirit, works and stirs up praying
graces; as a comforting Spirit, silences our fears, and helps us over
all discouragements. The Holy Spirit is the spring of all desires
toward God, which are often more than words can utter. The Spirit
who searches the hearts, can perceive the mind and will of the
spirit, the renewed mind, and advocates his cause. The Spirit
makes intercession to God, and the enemy prevails not.” Matthew
Henry
Even as Solomon built the temple he did not himself cut the timbers
and carve the stone. He caused others to do the work. So the
Holy Spirit causes us to pray. It is Him and it is us at the same
time. When Solomon built the temple the stones were cut out far
away from the temple structure. “The house, while it was being
built, was built of stone prepared at the quarry, and there was
neither hammer nor axe nor any iron tool heard in the house while it
was being built.” 1 Kings 6:7 While our house or life of prayer is
being built, by the Holy Spirit, we do not recognize the work as it is
done quite and in secret. This is the way of the Spirit. He does
great and powerful things in mysterious and subtle ways.
The Holy Spirit Himself intercedes for us, by causing us to
intercede; He indites our prayers for us, not in a book, but in our
hearts; He shows us our need, He stirs us up to prayer, He supplies
us with arguments, puts words into our mouths, enlarges our
hearts, makes faith strong in prayer, He enables us to come to God
as our Father; and gives us liberty and boldness in His presence.
This is done “with groanings too deep for words;” not that the Spirit
of God groans, but He stirs up groans in the saints; which suppose
a burden on us, and our sense of it: and these are said to be
“unutterable;” saints, under his influence, praying silently, without a
voice, as Hannah did in 1 Sam 1:13 “As for Hannah, she was
speaking in her heart, only her lips were moving, but her voice was
not heard.”
It is the working of the Holy Spirit that makes our praying
successful. We can never be successful in our own energies. God
must do the work and He will do it through us. The prayer that
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comes from Heaven will succeed in reaching back to Heaven.
Surely our Lord had this work of the Holy Spirit in mind when He
climaxed His teaching on prayer with “If you then, being evil, know
how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your
heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?” Lk
11:13
He is in us to inspire our desires and longings, to quicken our minds
and hearts, and giving us prayers, to pray them through us. All
effectual prayer is that which the Holy Sprit prays through us.
If the Spirit prays in us, shall we not share His “groanings” in
prayer? The Kneeling Christian
In all states of dilemma or of difficulty, prayer is an available source.
The ship of prayer may sail through all temptations, doubts and
fears, straight up to the throne of God; and though she may be
outward bound with only griefs, and groans, and sighs, she shall
return freighted with a wealth of blessings! C. H. Spurgeon
You who never know what a groan is, or a falling tear, are destitute
of vital godliness.
++++++++++++++++++++
2. Miscellaneous
The A.C.T.S. of Prayer
“Pray??” “I don’t know what to say.” “Talk to God?” “I don’t know
what to talk about.” If we haven’t said this we surely have felt it. The
following is a topical outline for the content of our prayers, whether
public or private. Knowing what to talk about can not only help us
get started in praying but also can us have the right content and
balance in our praying. The order is very important. Don’t miss the
message in the order of the points of the outline. “Supplication” or
requesting from God is the last thing not the first thing and surely
not the only thing in our prayers. God is not a cosmic bell hop to
supply our desires. We are to first “adore” Him for Who He is and
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then “confess” that we are unworthy and then “thank” Him for what
He has done, is doing, and has promised to do. Then if we have
something that we desire, as we abide in Christ, we ask or
“supplicate” our loving and generous God for those things in the will
of God. This acrostic is easily remember, even when we are
praying with our eyes shut.
Adoration
“Adoration may be defined the homage rendered to God in the immediate
view of his majesty, blessedness and glory, filling ;the soul with
corresponding emotions of veneration and awe.” Palmer
Ex 15:11-- “Who is like unto thee, O LORD, among the gods? who is like
thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders?”
Ps 104:1,2-- “Bless the LORD, O my soul. O LORD my God, thou art
very great; thou art clothed with honour and majesty. 2 Who coverest
thyself with light as with a garment: who stretchest out the heavens like a
curtain:”
“Oh, the selfishness of the thought which restricts prayer to mere petition!
Shall nothing drive us to God but the pressure of want? Shall we think of
him only when we are hungry, and forget him when we are full?..Is there
nothing attractive in the character of Jehovah Himself to draw us with the
power of a magnet?” Palmer
Confession
Confession means “speaking together”-- relating to sin, it means that we
agree with God about our sin. To confess our sins is to acknowledge the
Sovereignly of God. A true Christian will be grieved when he sees sin in
his life and will agree with God that it is sin ;and he will turn from it.
Ps 51:4--“Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy
sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear
when thou judgest.”
Lk 18:13--“And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much
as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be
merciful to me a sinner.”
Ja 5:16--“Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another,
that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man
availeth much.”
Ac 19:18--“And many that believed came, and confessed, and shewed
their deeds.”
Thanksgiving
To give thanks is to acknowledge benefit received and express gratitude.
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Co. 4:2-- “Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving;”
1 Th 5:18-- “In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in
Christ Jesus concerning you.”
1 Co 1:4-- “I thank my God always on your behalf, for the grace of God
which is given you by Jesus Christ..”
2 Co 9:15-- “Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift.”
Ro 1:21-- “Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as
God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and
their foolish heart was darkened.”
Supplication
Supplication is prayer as the expression of need. Sometimes our need is
an indication of what God wants to do us.
Ps 55:1--“Give ear to my prayer, O God; and hide not thyself from my
supplication.”
Ph 4:6-- “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and
supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto
God.”
John 15:7 “If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask
what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.”
(Each of the above could be the subject making four sessions of prayer)
++++++++++++++++++++
Adoring God
Sometimes we use the acrostic “A.C.T.S.” as an outline to help us
in prayer. A = adore, C = confession, T = thanksgiving, S =
supplication. Let’s consider the first, Adoring God. A dictionary
defines “adore” 1. To worship as divine, 2. To love or revere
deeply. “Adoration may be defined as the homage rendered to God
in the immediate view of his majesty, blessedness and glory, filling
the soul with corresponding emotions of veneration and awe.”
Palmer
When Jesus was asked “‘which commandment in the law is the
greatest?’ Jesus said to him, ‘Love the Lord your God with all your
heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’” Mat 22:36.37
John follows this with “The person who does not love does not
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know God, because God is love.” 1 Jn 4:8 The true child of God
has a love for Him but if it does not express itself in verbal
communication is not a very passionate love.
Adoring God should be the easy but sometimes it is hard to
express our love to Him. The problem is not because God is lacking
in adorable qualities, but that our depraved nature can not
appreciate the character of God. Even though we are saved from
the awful and eternal judgment of God, and even saved from the
sorrow and consequences of sin here in the nasty now and now,
still, our nature is dull and slow to receive an understanding and
appreciation of the character of God. Sometime it is hard to
express our love for God when great and unexplained tragedy has
occurred in our lives. Job said “If he slays me, I will hope in him.”
13:15. It is wiser to bow in submission and adoration of God than
to try to judge him.
To adore God involves both our understanding and our emotions.
As we come to understand that God is “omnipresent (is in all places
at all times), omnisciencent (knows everything whether past,
present, future, or potential), omnipotent (is all powerful wether
directly of through means), immutable (can not change, is always
the same), infinitely holy and completely just, glorious in all His
manifestation, self-existent and eternal, sovereign, faithful, wise,
loving, graceful, merciful, long-suffering, gentle, kind, and the list
goes on and on. Who is a more loveable person than God? There
is none other. “Who is like unto thee, O LORD, among the gods?
who is like thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing
wonders?” Ex 15:11 Who most deserves to be loved and adored?
It is the God of our salvation.
God is to be approached in both awe and adoration. When we pray
we should tell God that we love Him because of who He is and
what He has done for us. “Oh, the selfishness of the thought which
restricts prayer to mere petition! Shall nothing drive us to God but
the pressure of want? Shall we think of him only when we are
hungry, and forget him when we are full?..Is there nothing attractive
in the character of Jehovah Himself to draw us with the power of a
magnet?” Palmer
If we abide in adoration for our God sin not will capture our
affections. “If you love me, you will obey my commandments.” Jn
14:15 Obedience is a response of devotion and adoration of the
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Redeemer who set us free.
God has not saved us without respect to our emotions, they are a
vital part of our relation and communication with Him. Our
counselors tell us that is important for husband and wife to express
their love for one another in both actions and words. It is important
that we tell our spouse “I Love You” but is more important that we
tell God “I Love You” and Jesus “I Love You.” We need to tell
God that we love him. It does not fulfill a need in Him, but it does
please Him and glorify him. We have a genuine need to express
our love and adoration to God personally (secretly and corporately).
This process gets our emotions out where we can recognize and
confirm them and have a stronger and more intimate relationship
with our God.
Our Lord ranks love for Him as of more importance than love for
our family, “Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not
worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is
not worthy of me.” Mat 10:37 “If anyone comes to me and does not
hate his own father and mother, and wife and children, and brothers
and sisters, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.” Lk
14:26 Our Lord is using the term “hate” in a figurative sense, which
is operating on a relative scale. God is to be loved more than family
or self.. Our love for God should make our love for a spouse, a
parent or a child seem like hate, relatively. Our service for God is
hindered if of our love for Him is not of the right quality.
Since “the love of God has been poured out in our hearts through
the Holy Spirit who was given to us.” Rom 5:5 shouldn’t we pour out
our love to God. Privately for sure and publicly for His glory. As we
pray we should express our love to Jesus. Surely we are not
ashamed of Him, especially after He has done so much for us.
“Lips cry ‘God be merciful’ That ne’er cry ‘God be praised.’ O
come let us adore Him!” The Kneeling Christian
“The most healthy state of a Christian is to be always empty in self
and constantly depending upon the Lord for supplies; to be always
poor in self and rich in Jesus; weak as water personally, but mighty
through God to do great exploits; and hence the use of prayer,
because, while it adores God, it lays the creature where it should
be, in the very dust.” CHS
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More Love to Thee, O Christ
More love to thee, O Christ,
More love to thee!
Hear thou the prayer I make
On bended knee;
This is my earnest plea,
More love, O Christ, to thee,
More love to Thee
More love Thee
Once earthly joy I craved,
Sought peace and rest;
Now Thee alone I seek’
Give what is best;
This all my prayer shall be,
More love, O Christ to thee,
More love to Thee,
More love to Thee
Let sorrow do its work,
Send grief and pain;
Sweet are the messengers,
Sweet their refrain,
When they can sing with me,
More love, O Christ, to Thee,
More love to Thee,
More love to Thee
Then shall my latest breath
Whisper thy praise;
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This be the parting cry,
My heart shall raise,
This still its prayer shall be,
More love, O Christ to Thee,
More love to Thee,
More love to Thee.
++++++++++++++++++++
Confession in Prayer
Sometimes we use the acrostic “A.C.T.S.” to help us in prayer. A =
adore, C = confession, T = thanksgiving, S = supplication. Let us
look at confession in prayer. Confession means “speaking
together”-- relating to sin, it means that we agree with God about
our sin. “...God and ourselves, unite in a concurrent declaration in
regard to sin. God...declares it the abominable thing which his soul
hateth. The sinner...feels the terribleness of it in his own
experience; and running upon this line, unites with God in declaring
it that abominable thing which every soul ought to hate.” (Theology
of Prayer, B.M. Palmer) A true Christian will be grieved when he
sees sin in his life and will agree with God that it is sin and he will
turn from it. Confessing our sin clears God of our wrong doing and
protects His name. Confession is necessary in order to pray: 1.
Because God is offended. 2. Because We are guilty, therefore,
disqualified to pray. 3. Because the essence of prayer is honestly
communicating with God.
We need to confess that our basic nature is to sin.
That we are far from God and not naturally in submission to God’s
law and will. The theologians call this original sin. “Look, I was
prone to do wrong from birth; I was a sinner the moment my mother
conceived me.” Ps 51:5 We are not sinners because of bad
examples around us. We were willing and eager student to learn
sin. “ If God places no trust in his holy ones, if even the heavens
are not pure in his eyes, how much less man, who is abominable
and corrupt, who drinks in evil like water! ” Job 15:15,16
We need to confess actual sins that we have committed.
Privately committed sins need to be confessed privately. Publicly
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committed sins need to be confessed publicly. We can sin in act,
word, and thought. Our sin may not get out of our thoughts but it is
still actual sin. We need to recognize that we are guilty and that it
separates us from God and His blessings. We need to confess our
personal sins “The tax collector, however, stood far off and would
not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, be
merciful to me, sinner that I am!’” Lk 18:13
We need to confess our corporate sins.
Ezra confessed the corporate sin of Israel. “I prayed, ‘O my God, I
am ashamed and embarrassed, my God, to lift my face to you. For
our iniquities have climbed higher than our head, and our guilt
extends to the heavens.’” Ezra 9:6
We need to confess that our sin is basically against God.
Even though sin hurts other, it is basically sin against God and
must always be dwelt with in our relationship with God. “Against
you, especially you, I have sinned; I have done what is sinful in
your sight. So you are just when you confront me; you are right
when you condemn me.” Ps 51:4
We need to confess to one another.
“So confess your sins to one another and pray for one another so
that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great
effectiveness.” Jam 5:16 This keeps us humble, makes us
accountable and helps us discipline ourselves to prevent it
happening again.
We need to confess our sins so God will hear us.
“ If I had harbored sin in my heart, the sovereign Master would not
have listened. However, God heard; he listened to my prayer. God
deserves praise, for he did not reject my prayer or abandon his love
for me!” Ps 66:18-20
It is not a matter of “If we have sinned, we should confess.” The
Bible tells us plainly that we have sinned and we are to confess it.
“If we say we do not bear the guilt of sin, we are deceiving
ourselves and the truth is not in us. But if we confess our sins, he
is faithful and righteous, forgiving us our sins and cleansing us from
all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a
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liar and his word is not in us.” 1 Jn 1:8-10 The basic definition for
sin in the NT is “to miss the mark,” this definition alone give us
abundant opportunity for confession because we have all missed
very badly the standard that God’s holiness requires.
How do we discover the sin in our life to confess? To compare
ourselves to others will not reveal our sin to us. On the contrary, it
will increase our sin by hiding the sin we have and feeding our
pride. We must put ourselves before God and give Him time to
show us ourselves. This can be done personally and corporately.
The Psalmist said “Examine me, and probe my thoughts! Test me,
and know my concerns! See if there is any idolatrous tendency in
me, and lead me in the reliable ancient path!” Ps 139:23-24 The
most mature saints have not matured past the need for confession
but have learned how to detect sin in their lives and deal with it
quickly. “The one who covers his transgressions will not prosper,
but whoever confesses and abandons them will find mercy.” Prov
28:13
"Prayer has often been compared to breathing; we have only to
carry out the comparison fully to see how wonderful the place is
which the holy spirit occupies. With every breath we expel the
impure air which would soon cause our death, and inhale again the
fresh air to which we owe our life. So we give out from us, in
confession the sins, in prayer the needs and the desires of our
heart. And in drawing in our breath again, we inhale the fresh air of
the promises, and the love, and the life of God in Christ. We do this
through the holy spirit, who is the breath of our life..." A. Murray
What better can we do, than to the place
Repairing, where He judged us, prostrate fall
Before Him reverent; and there confess
Humbly our faults, and pardon beg; with tears
Watering the ground, and with our sighs the air
Frequenting?
(John Milton has Adam saying to Eve)
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Corporate Prayer: What Is It
The word “corporate” is an adjective meaning 1. Of or being a
corporation. 2. Combined into one body: joint or corporate
action. The term “corporate prayer” would mean two or more
children of God praying the same prayer at the same time. When
one person is verbalizing the prayer we call it “leading in prayer.” If
more than one person is verbalizing the prayer, we call it “praying in
unison.” If all are praying the same prayer in mind and spirit then
we are experiencing true “Corporate prayer.” “Corporate prayer” is
not just several people in the same room taking turns praying, but
each one experiencing union of soul with the one leading and all
becoming one in communion with God. This union of mind and
spirit is the result of the work of the Spirit.
Paul make two concluding statements about tongues in the church
service: 1 Cor 14:15-17 “What is the outcome then? I will pray with
the spirit and I will pray with the mind also; I will sing with the spirit
and I will sing with the mind also. Otherwise if you bless in the
spirit only, how will the one who fills the place of the ungifted say
the “Amen” at your giving of thanks, since he does not know what
you are saying? For you are giving thanks well enough, but the
other person is not edified.” and in verse 26 “What is the outcome
then, brethren? When you assemble, each one has a psalm, has a
teaching, has a revelation, has a tongue, has an interpretation. Let
all things be done for edification.” The thrust of Paul’s teaching is
that when someone speaks, sings, or prays it must be with
understanding so others can participate and agree and say “Amen”
which means “so be it.”
It is normal that not every one gets to pray audibly in the prayer
meeting. Some think that they have wasted their time in coming to
the meeting since they did not get to participate and they may have
done so if that is all they came to do. But that should not and need
not be the case. We that are silent need to join our spirits with the
one speaking to God. “Even though we may not take part audibly
in the action, yet if we are there in a right spirit - there really to wait
upon God, we marvelously help the tone of a meeting.” C.H.
Mackintosh
It is not always necessary that we take prayer requests, we can
lead one another to the throne to pray with the “corporate support”
of the entire group. If one Jacob can prevail over the angel, then
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what could several Jacobs accomplish? “While it is true that one
man who knows how to pray and make intercession in the Spirit
has far more power with God than a host of half-hearted ones, it is
nevertheless a glorious fact that the prayers of a sanctified host,
when of one heart and soul, become irresistible.” –Thomas Payne
Our Lord Jesus teaches us about agreeing together, “Again I say
to you, that if two of you agree on earth about anything that they
may ask, it shall be done for them by My Father who is in heaven.
For where two or three have gathered together in My name, I am
there in their midst.” Mat 18:19-20 This lesson of our Lord involves
more than just agreeing in prayer, but it is fundamental to His
teaching and to effectual corporate prayer.
“The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.” Compare a
machine in working order with a box of the same parts. “What we
cannot obtain by solitary prayer we may by social...because where
our individual strength fails, there union and concord are effectual.”
Chrysostom 400 AD
Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 “Two are better than one because they have a
good return for their labor. For if either of them falls, the one will lift
up his companion. But woe to the one who falls when there is not
another to lift him up. Furthermore, if two lie down together they
keep warm, but how can one be warm alone? And if one can
overpower him who is alone, two can resist him. A cord of three
strands is not quickly torn apart.”
Lev 26:6-9 “I shall also grant peace in the land, so that you may lie
down with no one making you tremble. I shall also eliminate harmful
beasts from the land, and no sword will pass through your land.
‘But you will chase your enemies and they will fall before you by the
sword; five of you will chase a hundred, and a hundred of you will
chase ten thousand, and your enemies will fall before you by the
sword. So I will turn toward you and make you fruitful and multiply
you, and I will confirm My covenant with you.” A ratio of
effectiveness of 1/20 increases to 1/100 by an increase in corporate
size. “There is a power in conferring and covenanting, on the part of
kindred spirits, to come before God, and plead together some
special promise.” The Prayer Meeting and Its History, J. B.
Johnston
145
++++++++++++++++++++
“The prayer that God particularly delights to answer is united
prayer. There is power in the prayer of a single individual, and the
prayer of individuals has wrought great things, but there is far
greater power in united prayer.” The Power of Prayer, R.A. Torrey
"It is a tremendous responsibility to lead God's people to God's
throne and into God's presence in public prayer. God can so
strongly anoint the one who leads in prayer that all present are
brought into consciousness of God's presence until the one praying
is forgotten and the people as one in heart and soul unite and
agree in the prayer." Mighty Prevailing Prayer, Wesley Duewel, p
129
++++++++++++++++++++
Corporate Prayer: The Open Secret
By “open secret” we mean something that is common knowledge
but everyone’s actions make it look like it is a secret. Concerning
the apostolical history of meetings for prayer Spurgeon said, “these
meetings must have been very common indeed. They were,
doubtless, every-day things...” Let’s look at the N.T. passages that
refer to the “corporate prayer meeting.”
Matt 6:5,6 “When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites;
for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street
corners so that they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they
have their reward in full. But you, when you pray, go into your inner
room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and
your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.”
The Jews practice was t
Mark 11:17 “And He began to teach and say to them, Is it not
written, My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the
nations? But you have made it a robbers’ den.” (Lk 19:46)
Lk 1:8-10 “Now it happened that while he was performing his
priestly service before God in the appointed order of his division,
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according to the custom of the priestly office, he was chosen by lot
to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense. And the whole
multitude of the people were in prayer outside at the hour of the
incense offering.”
Lk 18:10 “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a
Pharisee and the other a tax collector.”
Act 1:13,14 “When they had entered the city, they went up to the
upper room where they were staying; that is, Peter and John and
James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and
Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon the Zealot, and
Judas the son of James. These all with one mind were continually
devoting themselves to prayer, along with the women, and Mary the
mother of Jesus, and with His brothers.” One of the first uses of the
prayer-meeting, then, is to encourage a discouraged people.
Ac 2:41-43 “So then, those who had received his word were
baptized; and that day there were added about three thousand
souls. They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’
teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.
Everyone kept feeling a sense of awe; and many wonders and
signs were taking place through the apostles.” If we are to
understand the functions of “teaching” “fellowship , “breaking of
bread” as corporate functions why would we think of this reference
to “prayer” as anything else? Just look at the results.
Ac 3:1-7 “Now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the
ninth hour, the hour of prayer. And a man who had been lame from
his mother’s womb was being carried along, whom they used to set
down every day at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful,
in order to beg alms of those who were entering the temple. When
he saw Peter and John about to go into the temple, he began
asking to receive alms. But Peter, along with John, fixed his gaze
on him and said, Look at us! And he began to give them his
attention, expecting to receive something from them. But Peter
said, I do not possess silver and gold, but what I do have I give to
you: In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene—walk! And seizing
him by the right hand, he raised him up; and immediately his feet
and his ankles were strengthened.”
Today the Church in
America has the silver and gold but not the power to change
peoples lives.
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Ac 4:31 “And when they had prayed, the place where they had
gathered together was shaken, and they were filled with the Holy
Spirit, and began to speak the word of God with boldness.” The
prayer-meeting is the comfort and resource of a persecuted church.
Ac 6:4 “But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry
of the word.” If “ministry of the word” is corporate why not “prayer”?
Ac 12:5 “So Peter was kept in the prison, but prayer for him was
being made fervently by the church to God.”
This prayer meeting may have been in a home but still it was the
church praying in a prayer meeting(s) that prevailed.
Ac 13:2,3 “While they were ministering to the Lord and fasting, the
Holy Spirit said, Set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to
which I have called them. Then, when they had fasted and prayed
and laid their hands on them, they sent them away.”
The early
Christians had an atmosphere in which the Holy Spirit could speak
and here He give instruction for missionary operations.
Ac 14:22,23 “Strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging
them to continue in the faith, and saying, Through many tribulations
we must enter the kingdom of God. When they had appointed
elders for them in every church, having prayed with fasting, they
commended them to the Lord in whom they had believed.” In the
midst of persecution we must commend each other to the Lord by
prayer.
Ac 16:12,13 “and from there to Philippi, which is a leading city of
the district of Macedonia, a Roman colony; and we were staying in
this city for some days. And on the Sabbath day we went outside
the gate to a riverside, where we were supposing that there would
be a place of prayer; and we sat down and began speaking to the
women who had assembled.”
A prayer-meeting became the first foothold of the gospel in Europe
just as it is for any work of God.
1 Cor 11:4,5 “Every man who has something on his head while
praying or prophesying disgraces his head. But every woman who
has her head uncovered while praying or prophesying disgraces
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her head, for she is one and the same as the woman whose head
is shaved.” 14:15 “What is the outcome then? I will pray with the
spirit and I will pray with the mind also; I will sing with the spirit and
I will sing with the mind also.”
Paul was so concerned about
“corporate prayer” in the Corinthian church that he gave detailed
instruction for it.
1 Thess 5:17 “pray without ceasing;”
This is given in a context
of exhortation to the corporate church body.
1 Tim 2:1,8 “First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers,
petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all
men....Therefore I want the men in every place to pray, lifting up
holy hands, without wrath and dissension.”
When Paul gave
instruction to Timothy he included corporate prayer.
“How could we expect a blessing if we were too idle to ask for it?
How could we look for a Pentecost if we never met with one accord,
in one place, to wait upon the Lord? Brethren, we shall never see
much change for the better in our churches in general till the prayer
meeting occupies a higher place in the esteem of Christians.” Only
a Prayer Meeting, p 13. We like to glory in Spurgeon’s success but
we fail to strive for a Monday night service which he said “scarcely
ever numbers less than from a thousand to twelve hundred
attendants...” p 27
“The prayer-meeting is an institution which ought to be very
precious to us, and to be cherished very much by us as a Church,
for to it we owe everything. When our comparatively little chapel
was all but empty, was it not a well-known fact that the prayermeeting was always full? And when the Church increased, and the
place was scarce large enough, it was the prayer meeting that did it
all. When we went to Exeter Hall, we were a praying people,
indeed; and when we entered on the larger speculation, as it
seemed, of the Surrey Music-hall, what cries and tears went up to
heaven for our success! And so it has been ever since. It is in the
spirit of prayer that our strength lies; and if we lose this, the locks
will be shorn from Samson, and the Church of God will become
weak as water and though we, as Samson did, go and try to shake
ourselves as at other times, we shall hear the cry, The Philistines
be upon thee, and our eyes will be put out, and our glory will
depart, unless we continue mighty and earnest in prayer.”
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What Should Be the Great Object of the Prayer-meeting,
1. First, it must be the glory of God, or else the petition is not
sufficiently put up.
2. And then, in subservience to that, let us pray for a blessing on
the Church.
3. Then we should also pray for the conversion of the ungodly.
“History confirms the truth that wherever evangelical and vital
religion flourish, there lives the earnest gatherings for social
prayer.” The Prayer Meeting and Its History, J. B. Johnston
A church is never more like the New Testament church than when it
is praying.
++++++++++++++++++++
Corporate Prayer: How to Have the Manifest Presence of God
The basic assumption of James 4:8 “Draw near to God and He will
draw near to you” is that there is a something more than the
omnipresence of God. God can draw nearer than the presence
that He has at all times in all places. Before the fall God came in
special visitation to Adam and Eve. “They heard the sound of the
Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man
and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God
among the trees of the garden.” Gen 3:8 That presence must have
been something more than His omnipresence. When they fell they
hid from that presence. In our salvation God has restored our
relationship with Him but we are still struggling with His special
presence. What is the manifest presence of God? It is not the
presence of God as He is all present or omnipresence. It is not His
providence that is ever waiting on us. It is when He becomes
undeniably real, irresistibly and powerfully changing saint and
sinner, when He gloriously glorifies Himself among His people. The
presence of God is unquestionably Sovereign and irresistible,
nothing stands in His way. When He reveled Himself to us in our
initial salvation experience it was His sovereign prerogative to do so
and likewise with His manifest presence.
In Jn 14:21 our Lord teaches us about His and His Father’s relation
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to us, “He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one
who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father,
and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him. Judas (not
Iscariot) said to Him, Lord, what then has happened that You are
going to disclose Yourself to us and not to the world? Jesus
answered and said to him, If anyone loves Me, he will keep My
word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and
make Our abode with him.” The word “disclose” is emphanizo
meaning to manifest, exhibit to view, to show one's self, come to
view, appear, be manifest, to indicate, disclose, declare, make
known. Too often we read into the Scriptures what is norm in our
experience. There is much more for us in our relation to God than
we know.
Paul said to the Corinthians “I was with you in weakness and in
fear and in much trembling, and my message and my preaching
were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of
the Spirit and of power, so that your faith would not rest on the
wisdom of men, but on the power of God. 1 Cor 2:3-5
Demonstration here is a making manifest, showing forth, a
demonstration, proof. May God help us to experience the “
demonstration of the Spirit and of power” personally and
corporately.
The question then is “How can we have this special and manifest
presence of God?”
The answer may be simple in principle but difficult to acquire. In
Matt 6:5,6 Jesus give us instruction in praying, “When you pray,
you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray
in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be
seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But
you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and
pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees
what is done in secret will reward you.” We are not told not to pray
in the synagogue or assembly, but that we are not to do it “ like the
hypocrites.” Public praying is good but it requires a counterpart
“private praying.” “The term translated room refers to the inner
room of a house, normally without any windows opening outside,
the most private location possible.”
The important thing is that we have a time and a place each day
that we go to for private communion with God. It is best if it is
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where we won’t be distracted and where others cannot hear us.
The best method is to be on our knees and pray out loud to God.
The word “reward” means to pay off, discharge what is due, to
give back, restore. Our Lord is saying that God will give us what is
due if we pray in secret. Note that the context here is public or
corporate praying. If we base our public life, praying and otherwise,
in our private life then God will bless our public life. How are we to
have the special and manifest presence of God in our corporate
experience? Answer--Have the manifest presence in our private
prayer experience. We cannot expect to have the “manifest
presence of God” publicly if we do not have it privately. If we do not
have it privately or publicly who's fault will it be. The secret of
praying is praying in secret.
It is also true that the degree of spiritual maturity that each of us
brings to this corporate prayer meeting will increase the corporate
experience of the presence of God. There is a sense in which we
can “bring the presence of God with us” to the prayer meeting. No,
we cannot control God but we can abide in His presence and carry
that with us where ever we go.
For us to advocate that we have the manifest presence of God in
our church services and not first and fundamentally have it in our
secret prayer lives is classic hypocrisy.
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“If we pray among a select society of Christians, we draw near to
God with holy boldness, something like what we use in our duties of
secret worship. We have reason to take more freedom among
fellow saints and whose hearts have felt many of the same
workings as our own.” A Guide to Prayer, Isaac Watts, p 58
If we be faithful to secret prayer God will be faithful to our corporate
prayer.
A dynamic praying church must be built from the inside out,
employing all four levels of prayer: the secret closet, the family
altar, small group praying and finally, the congregational setting.
Developing your Secret Closet of Prayer, Richard Burr, p 19.
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Lord, I have Shut the Door
Lord, I have shut the door, Here do I bow;
Speak, for my soul attend Turns to Thee now.
Rebuke Thou what is vain, Counsel my Soul,
Thy holy will reveal, My will control.
In this blest quietness clamorings cease;
Here in Thy presence dwells Infinite peace;
Yonder, the strife and cry, Yonder the sin;
Lord, I have shut the door, Thou art within!
Lord, I have shut the door, Strengthen my heart;
Yonder awaits the task - I share a part.
Only through grace bestowed May I be true;
Here, while alone with Thee, My strength renew.
By William M. Runyan, Copyright 1923. Renewal 1951 extended.
Hope Publishing Co., owner. All rights reserved.
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Paul’s Exhortation to Corporate Prayer
“First of all, then, I urge that requests, prayers, intercessions, and
thanks be offered on behalf of all people.” 1 Timothy 2:1
Paul begins this letter by exhorting Timothy concerning doctrine
(1:3-7) and continues talking about the law (1:8-11), and how all
this related to him (1:12-17), and again exhorts Timothy to fight the
good fight (1:18-20). The two main parts of public worship are the
ministry of the word and prayer and Paul is dealing with these as
two areas of concern. Now, Paul moves from the doctrinal to the
practical, especially as it relates to their corporate conduct.
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The word for “first” means “first in time or place or first in rank,” here
the latter definition applies. “The exhortation here is not addressed
particularly to Timothy, but relates to all who were called to lead
public prayer.” (Barnes’ Notes on the NT, p 1133) Paul is referring
to “Timothy and the congregations; Timothy is to direct them, and
the congregations are to follow his directions. Few commentators
will entertain the thought that Paul’s directions are intended only for
individuals and not for congregations. Timothy should not be
regarded as being the pastor of the church in Ephesus, the elders
were the pastors. Timothy was Paul’s representative who directed
pastors and churches in the entire province; hence, Paul also puts
these directions into writing in case somebody raised objection.”
(Interpretation of First Timothy, R.C.H. Lenski, p 538) That Paul is
referring to corporate conduct is further evidenced when he begins
chapter 3 by dealing with “the office of overseer” which is a church
body issues.
Paul is compassionate in his dealing with Timothy. When he says,
“I urge” he is using the word that means to call to one’s side, to
admonish, exhort. The noun form of this word, parakletos, is used
to refer to the Holy Spirit, the comforter or the one that comes along
side to help and strengthen. This word also occurs in 1:3, there it is
in the aorist tense where it has a sense of finality to it to as he deals
with doctrine and here it is present tense indicating that the
exhortation to prayer is ongoing and continual. These two
occurrences indicate that these two sections are to be considered
in comparison to each other, the one doctrinal and the other
practical.
Paul proceeds to give us four things that ought to be included in
corporate prayer.
1. “Requests” as seeking, asking, entreating, entreaty to God.
“The picture behind the word is that of a beggar sitting at the side of
the road, begging for the help of the king as he passes by. It
expresses destitution and inadequacy, inability to meet one’s own
needs, and total dependence on another. It is need expressed in a
cry... a definite need keenly felt.” (Prayer Power Unlimited, J.
Oswald Sanders, p 29)
2. “Prayers” as addressed to God or a place set apart or suited for
the offering of prayer. “As used here the word for prayers means
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prayer-wishes that are expressed in the presence and by the side
of another…it is the word that refers to needs that are always
present, in contrast to petitions (requests) which have specific
situations in view.” (Prayer Power Unlimited, J. Oswald Sanders, p
29)
3. “Intercessions” means a falling in with, meeting with, an
interview, that for which an interview is held, a conference or
conversation, a petition, supplication. “In intercession, we are
concerned about the needs and interests of others. Intercession is
the unselfish and altruistic aspect of prayer…in intercessions the
believer is acting as an intermediary between God and other
people. We forget ourselves and our own needs in our identification
with the needs of the one for whom we pray.” (Prayer Power
Unlimited, J. Oswald Sanders, p 30)
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Thanksgiving in Prayer
“Be devoted to prayer, keeping alert in it with thanksgiving” Col 4:2
“First of all, then, I urge that requests, prayers, intercessions, and
thanks be offered on behalf of all people.” 1 Tim 2:1
Sometimes we use the acrostic “A.C.T.S.” as an outline to help us
in prayer. A = adore, C = confession, T = thanksgiving, S =
supplication. Let us consider thanksgiving in prayer.
Thanksgiving defined: “To give thanks is to acknowledge the
bounty of that hand from which we receive our blessings, and to
ascribe honour and praise to the power, the wisdom and the
goodness of God upon that account.” A Guide to Prayer, Isaac
Watts p 29 “Thanksgiving is the act of expressing specific gratitude
to God for blessings He has bestowed upon us.” The Hour that
Changes the World, Dick Eastman p 95
There are two types of things we are to give God thanks for:
1. Those things He has given us.
Those things He has given us without our asking. God has
included us in His great plan of redemption. “Thanks be to God for
His indescribable gift.” 2 Cor 9:15 We are to thank God for being a
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just God. We are to thank God for revealing Himself to us sinful
creatures. For His protecting us from harm and suffering that
others endure.
Those things He has given us in answer to our prayer. “The
prayer of a righteous person has great effectiveness. ” James 5:16
For our forgiveness of sins and our hope of eternal life. For
delivering us from dangers and evils that we face. The ten lepers
could pray for mercy and healing but only one returned to express
thankfulness. How soon we forget where our blessings come from.
For all the mercies of life; for things spiritual, for Christ Himself, and
for all spiritual blessings in him; for electing, redeeming, sanctifying,
adopting, pardoning, and justifying grace; for the work of
sanctification in our lives, and for eternal life itself; for the Gospel
that we have heard and that we hear preached, promises of God,
truths that the Holy Spirit has helped us to see, the privilege of
public worship without persecution.
2. Those things that He will do for us, both that which we will not
ask for and that which we will ask for. When our Lord was about to
raise Lazarus from the dead He said “Father, I thank you that you
have listened to me.” Joh 11:41 Obviously Jesus had already
prayed about this situation and received the answer and was now
thanking His Father for what He was about to do. In Mat 15:36
Jesus thanked His Father for the seven loaves knowing what His
Father was about to do. It honors God for us to thank Him for what
He has not yet done but what we expect Him to do in the future.
3. The giving of thanks is not something reserved for private
prayer. I Chr 16:8 says “Give thanks to the LORD! Call on his
name! Make known his accomplishments among the nations!” In
Eph 5:19,20 we are told “speaking to one another in psalms,
hymns, and spiritual songs, singing and making music in your
hearts to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for each
other in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, ” The “psalms and
hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody” are things
done in the meeting of the saints, the corporate meeting. So
should we “Give thanks” in the corporate prayer meeting. The
prayer meeting is a place of His special presence and we ought to
“Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give
him thanks! Praise his name!” Ps 100:4 “Always rejoice,
constantly pray, in everything give thanks. For this is God’s will for
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you in Christ Jesus.” I The 5:16-18 The context of this passage is
the body life of the local church, this is probably a reference to the
prayer meeting.
4. We give God extra glory when we thank Him in
circumstance that are not convenient, in times of adversity,
desertion, temptation, affliction, and persecution, as well as in
prosperity. “Let them present thank offerings, and loudly proclaim
what he has done!” Psa 107:22 A sacrifice offering of thanksgiving
is to express thankfulness when we are hurting, being reproached,
suffering for His name, depressed, discouraged, in doubt, defeated.
It is associated with pain and giving up something of value to us.
5. The world is searching for peace, internationally and
personally but peace can only come from a right relationship with
God that includes thankfulness. “Do not be anxious about
anything. Instead, tell your requests to God in your every prayer
and petition—with thanksgiving. And the peace of God that
surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in
Christ Jesus.” Phi 4:6,7 “If anyone would tell you the shortest,
surest way to all happiness and all perfection, he must tell you to
make a rule to yourself to thank and praise God for everything that
happens to you, if you thank and praise God for it, you turn it into a
blessing.” William Law
6. We are to be full and overflowing with thankfulness.
“Therefore, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to
live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him and firm in your
faith just as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.”
Col 2:6,7
Just as we are saved through the work of Jesus Christ so we are to
give our thanks back to God through Him. “And whatsoever ye do
in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks
to God and the Father through him.” Col 3:17
“Count your blessings, name them one by one, and it will surprise
you what the Lord has done.”
“Praise and thanksgiving not only open the gates of heaven for me
to approach God, but also ‘prepare a way’ for God to bless me.”
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The Kneeling Christian
Thanks to God
Thanks, O God, for boundless mercy from Thy gracious throne
above;
Thanks for ev’ry need provided from the fulness of thy Love!
Thanks for daily toil and labor and for rest when shadows fall;
Thanks for love of friend and neighbor and Thy goodness unto all!
Thanks for thorns as well as roses; thanks for weakness and for
health;
Thanks for clouds as well as sunshine; thanks for poverty and
wealth!
Thanks for pain as well as pleasure – all thou sendest day by day;
And Thy Word, our dearest treasure, shedding light upon our way.
Thanks, O God, for home and fireside, here we share our daily
bread;
Thanks for hours of sweet communion, when by Thee our souls are
fed!
Thanks for grace in time of sorrow and for joy and peace in Thee;
Thanks for hope today, tomorrow, and for all eternity!
Thanks to God by August Ludvig Storm, 1862-1914,
translated by Carel E. Backstrom, 1901++++++++++++++++++++
Supplication in Prayer
“Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and
supplication
with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.” Ph
4:6
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Sometimes we use the acrostic “A.C.T.S.” to help us in prayer. A =
adore, c = confession, t = thanksgiving, s = supplication. Let’s
consider the fourth, “Supplication in Prayer.” Supplication is prayer
as the expression of need, its asking for something desired.
Sometimes our need is an indication of what God wants to do for
us. He wants us to enter into what He is doing in our lives by
learning what our need is, asking for it and trusting Him for it.
In Luke11:1-4 We have two prayers. The second is the answer to
the first. “Now Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he
stopped, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray.”
That was the first prayer, they asked for “prayer” to be taught to
them. This may be the most fundamental prayer of all. Praying is
not a natural skill, it is an acquired and developed ability. We must
be taught by the Spirit to pray. The first answer to the question of
what should we supplicate and ask for in pray is, “We should pray
for ourselves to have the ability to pray.” Once this skill is achieved
it’s exercise will supply all the other needs we have.
“And he said unto them, When ye pray, say, Father, Hallowed be
thy name. Thy kingdom come. Give us day by day our daily bread.
And forgive us our sins; for we ourselves also forgive every one
that is indebted to us. And bring us not into temptation.” Lk 11:2-4
Jesus now becomes a teacher of prayer. He did not think like
some people that say that prayer can not be taught. “Everything
that is legitimate to pray about can be found in the Lord’s Prayer.”
(And When you Pray, Ray Pritchard p 23). If you can’t find it in this
model prayer you shouldn’t pray for it. Sometimes we struggle with
exactly what to pray for but Jesus specified five catagorize of
petition or supplication:
1. Glorification of God. “Hallowed be thy name.” There is no
problem here to know what to pray for. We are to pray that
everything glorify our God. “For from him and through him and to
him are all things. To him be glory forever! Amen.” Rom 11:36 We
have authority to pray only for those things that Glorify God. “So
whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do everything for the
glory of God.” 1 Cor 10:31 What ever the circumstance, need or
crisis we are to pray that it will bring glory to our God.
2. Kingdom business. “Thy kingdom come.” Let’s not miss the
fact that “the kingdom of God” is something we are to pray about.
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We don’t think that this is limited to the Second Coming of our Lord
as described in 2 Thess 1:4 “when the Lord Jesus is revealed from
heaven with his mighty angels.” Rom 14:17 tells us what our
kingdom business is “For the kingdom of God does not consist of
food and drink, but righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy
Spirit.” The next category deals with food and drink but first we are
to pray about spiritual and practical things that will glorify God. It is
not just to pray for the kingdom but pray for the kingdom first. A
big responsibility in this area is intercession for others. Paul was
very desirous for the Christians to pray for him. “Be devoted to
prayer, keeping alert in it with thanksgiving. At the same time pray
for us too, that God may open a door for the message so that we
may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. Pray
that I may make it known as I should.” Col 4:2-4 “Only that in every
way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is being proclaimed, and
in this I rejoice. Yes, and I will continue to rejoice, for I know that
this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayers and the
help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ.” Phil 1:18,19
3. Daily need. “Give us day by day our daily bread.” God could
and many times does supply our need, without our asking. So why
ask at all? Answer: Jesus said to, that is why. Our needs are great
and varied. We need a lot more than food; we need the health to
eat and use its energy for God. We should include in this category
the needs of others. Our needs are spiritual as well as physical.
We need for God to work in our hearts to conform us to the image
of Jesus Christ. Let’s not miss the fact that the needs here
referenced are “daily” not “monthly” or “yearly.” A large bank
account balance is not a “daily need.” Sometimes God in His super
abundant grace allows us to have savings and retirement accounts
but it is daily needs that we have authority to pray for.
4. Forgiveness of sin. “And forgive us our sins; ” If we are truly
Christian we are saved, justified and forgiven for all our sins, past,
present and future then; why ask for forgiveness? There is a
difference between our legal position and our life performance.
Part of our sanctification is coming to understand what sin is, to
identify our sins and deal with them. Asking for forgiveness
acknowledges the fact of our sin, and agrees with God that it is
wrong and is an effort to move away from that sin. In this category
we have the authority to deal directly with God; no middle person is
needed. “If we say we do not bear the guilt of sin, we are deceiving
ourselves and the truth is not in us. But if we confess our sins, he
is faithful and righteous, forgiving us our sins and cleansing us from
all unrighteousness.” 1 Jn 1:8,9
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5. Predeliverence from sin. “And bring us not into temptation.”
A genuine Christian does not want to sin; he knows that he is weak
in himself and cannot keep himself from sin. He doesn’t trust
himself and does not want to be tested. To ask that God deliver us
from the opportunity to sin is a safe and healthy attitude to have.
“The meaning is, that God would not suffer us to be overcome by
temptation; that we may not be given up to the power of temptation,
and be drawn into sin.” (The Lord’s Prayer, Thomas Watson, p
187) This is the opposite of Peter’s attitude when He said “Even if I
must die with you, I will never deny you.” And all the disciples said
the same thing.” Matt 26:35 The wise Christian knows he is liable to
fall and wants to avoid it.
I CANNOT PRAY
I cannot say OUR if my religion has no room for others and their
needs.
I cannot say FATHER if I do not demonstrate this relationship in my
daily living.
I cannot say WHO ART IN HEAVEN if all my interests and pursuits
are in earthly things.
I cannot say HALLOWED BY MY NAME if I, who am called to bear
His Name, am not holy.
I cannot say THY KINGDOM COME if I am unwilling to give up my
own sovereignty and accept the righteous reign of God.
I cannot say ON EARTH AS IT IS IN HEAVEN unless I am truly
ready to give myself to His service here and now.
I cannot say GIVE US THIS DAY OUR DAILY BREAD without
expending honest effort for it, or by ignoring the genuine needs of
others.
I cannot say FORGIVE US OUR TRESPASSES AS WE FORGIVE
THOSE WHO TRESPASS AGAINST US if I continue to harbor a
grudge against anyone.
I cannot say LEAD US NOT INTO TEMPTATION if I deliberately
choose to remain in a situation where I am likely to be tempted.
I cannot say DELIVER US FROM EVIL if I am not prepared to fight
in the spiritual realm with the weapon of prayer.
I cannot say THINE IS THE KINGDOM if I do not give the King the
disciplined obedience of a loyal subject.
I cannot say THINE IS THE POWER if I fear what my neighbors
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and friends may say or do.
I cannot say THINE IS THE GLORY if I am seeking my own glory
first.
I cannot say FOREVER if I am too anxious about each day’s
events.
I cannot say AMEN unless I honestly say “Cost what it may, This is
my prayer.”
Source unknown
++++++++++++++++++++
The Act of Prayer has its own Benefit
“Let us lift up our heart with our hands unto God in the heavens.” —
Lamentations 3:41
The act of prayer teaches us our unworthiness, which is a very salutary
lesson for such proud beings as we are. If God gave us favours without
constraining us to pray for them we should never know how poor we are,
but a true prayer is an inventory of wants, a catalogue of necessities, a
revelation of hidden poverty. While it is an application to divine wealth, it
is a confession of human emptiness. The most healthy state of a
Christian is to be always empty in self and constantly depending upon the
Lord for supplies; to be always poor in self and rich in Jesus; weak as
water personally, but mighty through God to do great exploits; and hence
the use of prayer, because, while it adores God, it lays the creature where
it should be, in the very dust.
Prayer is in itself, apart from the answer which it brings, a great benefit to
the Christian. As the runner gains strength for the race by daily exercise,
so for the great race of life we acquire energy by the hallowed labour of
prayer. Prayer plumes the wings of God's young eaglets, that they may
learn to mount above the clouds. Prayer girds the loins of God's warriors,
and sends them forth to combat with their sinews braced and their
muscles firm. An earnest pleader cometh out of his closet, even as the
sun ariseth from the chambers of the east, rejoicing like a strong man to
run his race.
Prayer is that uplifted hand of Moses which routs the Amalekites more
than the sword of Joshua; (Ex 17:12 “But Moses' hands were heavy; and
they took a stone, and put it under him, and he sat thereon; and Aaron
and Hur stayed up his hands, the one on the one side, and the other on
162
the other side; And his hands were steady until the going down of the
sun.”)
It is the arrow shot from the chamber of the prophet foreboding defeat to
the Syrians (2 Ki 13:18 “16 And he said to the king of Israel, Put thy hand
upon the bow; and he put his hand upon it. And Elisha laid his hands
upon the king's hands. 17 And he said, Open the window eastward; and
he opened it. Then Elisha said, Shoot; and he shot. And he said,
Jehovah's arrow of victory, even the arrow of victory over Syria; for thou
shalt smite the Syrians in Aphek, till thou have consumed them. 18 And
he said, Take the arrows; and he took them. And he said unto the king of
Israel, Smite upon the ground; and he smote thrice, and stayed. 19 And
the man of God was wroth with him, and said, Thou shouldest have
smitten five or six times: then hadst thou smitten Syria till thou hadst
consumed it, whereas now thou shalt smite Syria but thrice.”).
Prayer girds human weakness with divine strength, turns human folly into
heavenly wisdom, and gives to troubled mortals the peace of God. We
know not what prayer cannot do! We thank thee, great God, for the
mercy-seat, a choice proof of thy marvelous loving kindness. Help us to
use it aright throughout this day!
Morning & Evening, C.H. Spurgeon
October 11 AM
++++++++++++++++++++
American Christians
I. The problem.
The American Christians are: Insulated from the way most
Christians live and the problems they face.
In the age of information and extremes we are extremely ignorant
to what the Christians in China, Korea, Sudan, Russia, etc, are
experiencing as to persecutions and to revival blessings. The
average Christian in America can not believe that there are 168,000
Christian martyrs per year. We have been dumbed down by the TV
and newspaper news media.
The American Christians are: Intoxicated with material things.
The affluencey of the American Christian reveals his carnality. We
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buy and consume in the same styles and to the same degrees as
the unsaved pagans in our neighborhoods. The Christian family in
American has the same number of TVs and the same designer
cloths as anyone else.
The American Christians are: Inoculated to the presence and
power of God.
When one is inoculated to a disease he is given a small sample of
the disease so his immune system will build a defense against it.
American Christians have had small sample of real Biblical
Christianity and have developed an immunity to getting the real
thing. We go to church a little bit, we read our Bibles sometimes,
we pray at our meals and when we have a crisis and we call that
normal Christianity. It is normal “American Christianity” but not
normal Net Testament Christianity.
Because of this the American Christian is not a praying Christian.
He doesn’t feel the need or sense the urgency to pray. Oh, where
are the “men of God” that should be proclaiming needs of the day.
II. The Solution
Answer to Insulation: Education, get the facts of what’s going on
in the world. Involvement, adopt a mission field to learn about and
pray for. Joh 15:15 “No longer do I call you servants; for the
servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you
friends; for all things that I heard from my Father, I have made
known unto you.”
Answer to Intoxication: Fasting. We need to pray that God
would wean us from the world and make us hungry for Him.
Mt 10:38 “And he that doth not take his cross and follow after me, is
not worthy of me.”
Mt 16:24 “Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man would
come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and
follow me.”
Answer to Inoculation: Personal experience of the God. We ask
as Elisha did, “Where is the Lord God of Elijah” We say there is a
God but we practice “practical atheism”. We need to experience
privately and corporately.
Lu 14:27 “Whosoever doth not bear his own cross, and come after
me, cannot be my disciple.”
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Lu 9:23 “And he said unto all, If any man would come after me, let
him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.”
Mr 10:21 “And Jesus looking upon him loved him, and said unto
him, One thing thou lackest: go, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give
to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come,
follow me.”
Php 3:10 “that I may know him, and the power of his resurrection,
and the fellowship of his sufferings, becoming conformed unto his
death;”
Gal 2: 20 “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I that
live, but Christ living in me: and that life which I now live in the flesh
I live in faith, the faith which is in the Son of God, who loved me,
and gave himself up for me.”
Every converted sinner is a soul revived to prayer. Every saint
restored from backsliding, is a soul returned to the life and power of
prayer. Every congregation enjoying an outpouring of the Spirit, is a
congregation revived and alive to the prayer meeting. The Prayer
Meeting and Its History, J. B. Johnston
No time to pray!
No time to pray!
O, who so fraught with earthly care
As not to give a humble prayer
165
Some part of day!
No time to pray!
What heart so clean, so pure within,
That needeth not some check from sin.
Needs not to pray?
No time to pray?
‘Mid each day's dangers, what retreat
More needful than the mercy seat?
Who need not pray?
No time to pray!
Must care or business' urgent call
So press us as to take it all,
Each passing day?
What thought more drear
Than that our God His face should hide,
And say, through all life's swelling tide,
No time to hear!
Anonymous
++++++++++++++++++++
Boring and Blasting, Ours and His
From: Prayer, by Ole. Hallesby, p 75 (Independent Theological
Seminary Oslo, Norway)
"pray without ceasing;"
1 Thess 5:17
"And let us not be weary in welldoing: for in due season we shall
reap, if we faint not." Gal 6:9
We notice, too, that God now and then sends us an awakening.
Nevertheless there is something in this connection which we should
think about, especially with reference to our prayers. In the first
place, I would point out the fact that awakenings occur very seldom.
As a rule decades elapse between revivals in our cities and rural
communities. In the next place, I would make mention of the fact
that the revivals which do take place are usually not very great,
being limited to a single locality. Finally, I would say that they are
often representative of but very little spiritual power. By this I do not
mean that there are no powers at work. There are often
tremendous, almost brutal powers at work. But it becomes
apparent, often during a revival, and especially afterwards, that
there was much human power and but little divine power in the
work that was done.
The reason for all this is that we fail to labor in prayer. We long for
revivals; we speak of revivals; we work for revivals; and we even
pray a little for them. But we do not enter upon that labor in prayer
which is the essential preparation for every revival.
Many of us misunderstand the work of the Spirit in the unconverted.
We think that this work is limited essentially to the time when the
awakenings are taking place. We seem to think that the
unconverted are not subject to divine influence between times. This
is a complete misunderstanding. The Spirit works without
interruption, during awakenings and between awakenings, even
though He works differently, and the effect therefore also is
different in the hearts of men.
The work of the Spirit can be compared to mining. The Spirit's work
is to blast to pieces the sinner's hardness of heart and his frivolous
opposition to God. The period of the awakening can be likened to
the time when the blasts are fired. The time between the
awakenings corresponds, on the other hand, to the time when the
deep holes are being bored with great effort into the hard rock.
To bore these holes is hard and difficult and a task which tries one's
patience. To light the fuse and fire the shot is not only easy but also
very interesting work. One sees "results" from such work. It creates
interest, too; shots resound, and pieces fly in every direction!
It takes trained workmen to do the boring. Anybody can light a fuse.
This fact sheds a great deal of light upon the history of revivals, a
history which is often strange and incomprehensible.
There are many people who would like to light the fuse. Many
would like to be evangelistic preachers. And some preachers are
even so zealous that they light a fuse before the hole has been
bored and explosive matter put in place. The resulting revival
becomes, therefore, nothing but a little display of fireworks!
During a revival our zeal for souls is so great that we are all active.
Some are so active that they are almost dangerous during an aftermeeting. When, on the other hand, the awakening has subsided,
and everyday conditions, perhaps even dry seasons, return, then
most of us lose our zeal and cease our activity.
But that is just when the Spirit calls us to do the quiet, difficult,
trying work of boring holy explosive material into the souls of the
unconverted by daily and unceasing prayer. This is the real
preparatory work for the next awakening. The reason why such a
long period of time elapses between awakenings is simply that the
Spirit cannot find believers who are willing to do the heavy part of
the mining work.
Everybody desires awakenings; but we prefer to let others do the
boring into the hard rock. There are, God be praised, in every
community some who take up this work which tries one's patience
so sorely. The Lord reward you, brother and sister, and, above all,
give you grace to persevere in the holy work you have taken up!
Let us be faithful to prepare the way with persistent praying.
Let us be faithful to wait on the Spirit to give wondrous workings of
His power.
++++++++++++++++++++
Fervent Praying
James 5:16 “Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for
another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a
righteous man availeth much.”
The words “effectual” and “fervent” are the translation of one Greek
word energeo meaning to be operative, be at work, put forth
power, to effect, show one's self operative. It has the prefix en
which means “In” “inside” or “within” so the emphasis is what is
going on within our own soul.
Also, energeo is present tense and middle voice. This kind of
praying is ongoing or continuous and is done personally and with
much involvement. It is doing something in and to the one praying.
After all God is not the one that needs to be changed, it is us that
needs to be conformed to Him. From the Divine perspective, this
may be the main benefit of praying, i.e. the change it brings in us.
This kind of praying is not cold or even lukewarm, not formal but
personal, not indifferent but importunate. This quality of praying
“avails much.” Here the word means to be strong, to have power
as shown by extraordinary deeds.
“Some translate the word ‘inspired,’ the Spirit of God breathes into
men the breath of spiritual life, and they live, and being quickened
by him, they breathe; and prayer is the breath of the spiritual man,
and is no other than the reverberation of the Spirit of God in him;
and such prayer cannot fail of success: it may be rendered
‘inwrought.’ True prayer is not what is written in a book, but what
is wrought in the heart, by the Spirit of God; who is the enditer of
prayer, who impresses the minds of his people with a sense of their
wants, and fills their mouths with arguments, and puts strength into
them to plead with God, and makes intercession for them according
to the will of God; such prayer is always heard, and regarded by
him: this has great power with God; whatever is asked, believing, is
received; God can deny nothing prayed for in this manner.” John
Gill
This quality of praying was manifested when:
1. Elijah prayed earnestly Ja 5:17 “Elijah was a man of like
passions with us, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain; and
it rained not on the earth for three years and six months.”
2. Moses prayed pleadingly Ex 32: 11-13 “And Moses besought
the LORD his God, and said, LORD, why doth thy wrath wax hot
against thy people, which thou hast brought forth out of the land of
Egypt with great power, and with a mighty hand? Wherefore should
the Egyptians speak, and say, For mischief did he bring them out,
to slay them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face
of the earth? Turn from thy fierce wrath, and repent of this evil
against thy people. Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, thy
servants, to whom thou swarest by thine own self, and saidst unto
them, I will multiply your seed as the stars of heaven, and all this
land that I have spoken of will I give unto your seed, and they shall
inherit it for ever.”
3. Daniel prayed intensely Dan 9:17-19 “Now therefore, O our
God, hearken unto the prayer of thy servant, and to his
supplications, and cause thy face to shine upon thy sanctuary that
is desolate, for the Lord's sake. O my God, incline thine ear, and
hear; open thine eyes, and behold our desolations, and the city
which is called by thy name: for we do not present our supplications
before thee for our righteousness, but for thy great mercies' sake. O
Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive; O Lord, hearken and do; defer not, for
thine own sake, O my God, because thy city and thy people are
called by thy name.“
4. Paul prayed agonizingly Rom 15:30 “Now I beseech you,
brethren, by our Lord Jesus Christ, and by the love of the Spirit,
that ye strive together with me in your prayers to God for me;“
5. Jesus prayed persistently Mat 26:39-44 “And he went forward
a little, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, My Father, if it be
possible, let this cup pass away from me: nevertheless, not as I will,
but as thou wilt. And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them
sleeping, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me
one hour? Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the
spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. Again a second time
he went away, and prayed, saying, My Father, if this cannot pass
away, except I drink it, thy will be done. And he came again and
found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy. And he left them
again, and went away, and prayed a third time, saying again the
same words.”
Outline from Principles and Practice of Prayer, p 119, by Ivan
French.
++++++++++++++++++++
How to Pray
“How to do anything is the secret and soul of its accomplishment.”
F.E. Marsh
1. Pray Secretly in the closet of communion. Ma 6:6 “But thou,
when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut
thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father
which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.” Lk 9:18
2. Pray Watchfully in the alertness of wakefulness. Ma 24:42
“Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.”
Mat 26:41 “Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the
spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
3. Pray Believingly in the simplicity of faith. Ma 21:22 “And all
things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall
receive.”
4. Pray Unceasingly in the continuance of well-doing. 1 Thes
5:17 “Pray without ceasing.”
5. Pray Abidingly in the will of God and in Christ. Jn 15:7,8 “If
ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye
will, and it shall be done unto you. Herein is my Father glorified,
that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.”
6. Pray Directly in the pointedness of definite petition. Jam
5:17,18 “Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and
he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the
earth by the space of three years and six months. And he prayed
again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her
fruit.”
7. Pray Effectually in the power of the Spirit. Jude 20 “But ye,
beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in
the Holy Ghost,” Rom 8:26 “Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our
infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought:
but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which
cannot be uttered.”
We often speak of the “Secret of Success.” Prayer is the secret to
spiritual life, growth and service.
If prayer is the secret to Christian service then the secret to praying
is “praying in secret.”
It is a necessity for our prayer meetings, that each person attending
the corporate prayer meeting be praying in secret so when they
come to the prayer meeting they will bring with them the presence
of God the Spirit.
To know the secret and not to use it is worse than not knowing it at
all. Jam 4:17 “Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth
it not, to him it is sin.”
One of the main objects of prayer is our “prayer life.” We should be
constantly be praying that we will grow in our communion with our
Savor and our God.
Nothing is more calculated to begat a spirit of prayer than to unite in
social prayer with one who has the Spirit himself. Mighty Prevailing
Prayer, Wesley Duewel
Be not afraid to pray; to pray is right;
Pray if thou canst with hope, but ever pray,
Though hope be weak or sick with long delay;
Pray in the darkness if there be no light;
And if for any wish thou dare not pray
Then pray to God to cast that wish away.
++++++++++++++++++++
In Praying We Should
Claim His attributes - Plead His justice, His mercy, His faithfulness,
His wisdom, His longsuffering, His tenderness. Abraham pleaded
for God’s justice when he prayed for the city of Sodom. He asked
for the city to be saved and at the closing of his prayer he said,
“Shall not the judge of all earth do right?”
Ge 18:25 That be far from thee to do after this manner, to slay the
righteous with the wicked: and that the righteous should be as the
wicked, that be far from thee: Shall not the Judge of ll the earth do
right?
I. Claim His promises.
When Jacob was waiting on the other side of the brook, when his
brother Esau was coming with armed men, he pleaded with God
not to destroy the mother and children, but the main reason he
used for pleading in this prayer was: “And thou said, surely I will do
thee good.”
Ge 32:12 And thou saidst, I will surely do thee good, and make thy
seed as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for
multitude.
III. Claim the Great Name of God. Moses did this in his prayer on
one occasion when he was praying for Israel. “What will thou do for
thy great name? The Egyptians will say, Because the Lord could
not bring them into the land, therefore he slew them in the
wilderness.”
IV. Claim mercy for our unworthiness - David prayed, “Lord, have
mercy upon mine iniquity, for it is very great.” Ps 25:16 Turn thee
unto me, and have mercy upon me; for I am desolate and afflicted.
V. Claim the sufferings, death, merit and intercession of Christ
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Jesus.
Jesus himself said, “If you need anything of God, all that the Father
has belongs to me; go and use my name.”
Col 1:12-14 “giving thanks unto the Father, who made us meet to
be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light; who delivered
us out of the power of darkness, and translated us into the kingdom
of the Son of his love; in whom we have our redemption, the
forgiveness of our sins:”
++++++++++++++++++++
Intercessory Prayer: Some Biblical Examples
“I exhort therefore, first of all, that supplications, prayers,
intercessions, thanksgivings, be made for all men;”
1 Tim 2:1
If we are really interested in others we will pray for them. But, the
fact of the matter is that, most of our praying is for ourselves. Even
when we pray for our family and friends it is, in part, a form of
praying for ourselves. Intercession means “to go to or meet a
person, especially for the purpose of conversation, consultation, or
supplication, to pray, entreat.” To “interceed” is to go to God for
someone and ask for their benefit. The highest form of prayer is
intercession for others, and the most effective ministry is that which
we exercise for other’s benefit. The following are a few cases of
noble intercessors who prayed for blessing upon others.
1. Moses, the self-abnegator, who was willing to be blotted out
from the Lord’s book so long as Israel was spared. Exod 32:30-32
“And it came to pass on the morrow, that Moses said unto the
people, Ye have sinned a great sin: and now I will go up unto
Jehovah; peradventure I shall make atonement for your sin. And
Moses returned unto Jehovah, and said, Oh, this people have
sinned a great sin, and have made them gods of gold. Yet now, if
thou wilt forgive their sin-- and if not, blot me, I pray thee, out of thy
book which thou hast written.”
2. Samuel, the faithful prophet, pleaded for Israel. 1 Sam 7:8,9
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“And the children of Israel said to Samuel, Cease not to cry unto
Jehovah our God for us, that he will save us out of the hand of the
Philistines. And Samuel took a sucking lamb, and offered it for a
whole burnt-offering unto Jehovah: and Samuel cried unto Jehovah
for Israel; and Jehovah answered him.”
3. Daniel, the humble statesman, pleaded for the nation of Judah
when in captivity by identifying himself with the sin of the nation.
Dan 9:4-6 “And I prayed unto Jehovah my God, and made
confession, and said, Oh, Lord, the great and dreadful God, who
keepeth covenant and lovingkindness with them that love him and
keep his commandments, we have sinned, and have dealt
perversely, and have done wickedly, and have rebelled, even
turning aside from thy precepts and from thine ordinances; neither
have we hearkened unto thy servants the prophets, that spake in
thy name to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all the
people of the land.”
4. Epaphras, the loving pleader, interceded for the saints at
Closse that they might stand perfect and complete in all the will of
God. Col 4:12,13 “Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of
Christ Jesus, saluteth you, always striving for you in his prayers,
that ye may stand perfect and fully assured in all the will of God.
For I bear him witness, that he hath much labor for you, and for
them in Laodicea, and for them in Hierapolis.”
5. Paul, the intense intercessor, pleaded for the Church at
Ephesus, that they might have God’s unparalleled riches. Eph
1:17-19 “that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory,
may give unto you a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the
knowledge of him; having the eyes of your heart enlightened, that
ye may know what is the hope of his calling, what the riches of the
glory of his inheritance in the saints, and what the exceeding
greatness of his power to us-ward who believe,” 3:16-20 “that he
would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, that ye may be
strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inward man; that
Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; to the end that ye,
being rooted and grounded in love, may be strong to apprehend
with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and
depth, and to know the love of Christ which passeth knowledge,
that ye may be filled unto all the fulness of God.”
6. John, the loving disciple, who prayed for his friend Gaius, that
he might have soul prosperity. 3 John 2 “Beloved, I pray that in all
things thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul
prospereth.”
7. Christ, the gracious Lord, who prayed for Peter that his faith not
fail. Lk 22:31,32 “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan asked to have you,
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that he might sift you as wheat: but I made supplication for thee,
that thy faith fail not; and do thou, when once thou hast turned
again, establish thy brethren.”
The wonderful intercessory prayer as recorded in Jn 17 is a sample
of how the Lord is interceding for His people now. “Wherefore also
he is able to save to the uttermost them that draw near unto God
through him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.”
Heb 7:25
(Outline from 1000 New Bible Readings, F. E. Marsh, p 216)
There is no better way to serve others than to pray for them.
Prevailing prayer is almost always for the sake of others.
Mighty Prevailing Prayer, Wesley Duewel
--
Lord, help me live from day to day
In such a self-forgetful way,
That even when I kneel to pray,
My prayer shall be for others.
–Charles Delucena Meigs
“Intercession is the noblest work God entrusts to us humans.” T.W.
Hunt
++++++++++++++++++++
Intercessory Prayer: Who and What
Heb 4:14-16 "Therefore, since we have a great high priest who
has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold
fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who cannot
sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted
in all things as we are, yet without sin. Therefore let us draw near
with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive
mercy and find grace to help in time of need."
“This kind of prayer is perhaps the noblest of all. It draws the
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believer out of himself into the lives of others; it enlarges his own
soul, expands his interest and increases his sympathies. It brings
him very near to Christ, for He was constantly giving of Himself to
others, serving others and praying for others.” (Principles and
Practice of Prayer, French, p 73)
I. Who Are The Intercessors, there are Three:
The Lord Jesus Jn 14:16 And I will pray the Father, and he shall
give you another Comforter, that he may be with you for ever.” Jn
16:26 “In that day ye shall ask in my name: and I say not unto you,
that I will pray the Father for you;” Jn 17:9,15,20 “I pray for them: I
pray not for the world, but for those whom thou hast given me; for
they are thine... I pray not that thou shouldest take them from the
world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil one...Neither
for these only do I pray, but for them also that believe on me
through their word;”
Ro 8:34 “It is Christ Jesus that died, yea rather, that was raised
from the dead, who is at the right hand of God, who also maketh
intercession for us.” Jesus prayed for Peter Lk 22:31 “Wherefore
also he is able to save to the uttermost them that draw near unto
God through him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for
them.” Heb 7:25
The Holy Spirit Rom 8:26,27 “And in like manner the Spirit also
helpeth our infirmity: for we know not how to pray as we ought; but
the Spirit himself maketh intercession for us with groanings which
cannot be uttered; and he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what
is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the
saints according to the will of God.”
The believer 1 Tim 2:1,2 “I exhort therefore, first of all, that
supplications, prayers, intercessions, thanksgivings, be made for all
men; for kings and all that are in high place; that we may lead a
tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and gravity.” Abraham, the
Father of the Faithful, is interceding for Lot and a wicked city in
Gen 18:23 “And Abraham drew near, and said, Wilt thou consume
the righteous with the wicked?”
A Believer is in very good association when he practices
intercession.
II. What Intercessory Prayer is:
Intercessory Prayer is praying for the kingdom of God: Jesus
taught us to pray for the kingdom. Lk 11:2 “And he said unto them,
When ye pray, say, Father, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom
come.” Lk 10:2 “And he said unto them, The harvest indeed is
plenteous, but the laborers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of
the harvest, that he send forth laborers into his harvest.” Ps 122:6
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“Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: They shall prosper that love
thee.”
Intercessory Prayer is desired by a true seeker for salvation: Ac
8:24 “And Simon answered and said, Pray ye for me to the Lord,
that none of the things which ye have spoken come upon me.”
Intercessory Prayer is for other’s holiness: 2 Co 13:7 “Now we
pray to God that ye do no evil; not that we may appear approved,
but that ye may do that which is honorable, though we be as
reprobate.” 2 Co 13:9 “For we rejoice, when we are weak, and ye
are strong: this we also pray for, even your perfecting.”
Intercessory Prayer is for others spiritual maturity: Php 1:9 “And
this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in
knowledge and all discernment;” Col 1:9 “For this cause we also,
since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray and make request
for you, that ye may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all
spiritual wisdom and understanding,”
Intercessory Prayer is praying for those who treat us wrongfully:
Mt 5:44 “pray for them that persecute you.” Lu 6:28 “bless them
that curse you, pray for them that despitefully use you.” Job 41:8
“my servant Job shall pray for you; for him will I accept, that I deal
not with you after your folly; for ye have not spoken of me the thing
that is right, as my servant Job hath.“
Intercessory Prayer is getting for others what God wants to give:
3 Jn 1:2 “Beloved, I pray that in all things thou mayest prosper and
be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.”
Intercessory Prayer is what we ask of one another: 1 Th 5:25
“Brethren, pray for us.” Jas 5:16 “Confess therefore your sins one
to another, and pray one for another.”
Intercessory Prayer is a test of the maturity & purity of our Prayer
life.
Intercessory Prayer is a cure for a weak & struggling Prayer Life.
In introducing his book The Ministry of Intercession, Andrew Murray
says, “The present volume owes its existence to the desire to
enforce two truths, of which formerly I had no such impression as
now. The one is--that Christ actually meant prayer to be the great
power by which His Church should do its work, and that the neglect
of prayer is the great reason the Church has not greater power over
the masses in Christian and in heathen countries...The second
truth...we have far too little conception of the place that
intercession, as distinguished from prayer for ourselves, ought to
have in the Church and the Christian life.” The Ministry of
Intercession, p 4.
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“The power of the Church truly to bless rests on intercession-asking and receiving heavenly gifts to carry to men.” The Ministry
of Intercession, Andrew Murray, p 5.
“In intercession our King upon the throne finds His highest glory; in
it we shall find our highest glory too.” The Ministry of Intercession,
Andrew Murray, p 5.
What an awesome privilege and responsibility it is to be an
intercessor.
++++++++++++++++++++
Intercessory Prayer: The Test of our Praying
“If Petition is prayer relative to our personal need, Intercession is
prayer relative to the need of others, for we can never intercede on
our own behalf. In all intercession at least three persons must
always be concerned: the one who speaks, the one spoken to,
and the one spoken for or against. And at least three things must
always be presumed: need on the part of the one spoken of;
power, on the part of the one spoken to and contact with both
these persons, on the part of the one who speaks. In worship,
confession, and petition there need only be two persons involved,
but, let me repeat, in intercession there can never be less than
three.” .Method in Prayer, W. Graham Scroggie p 73
Intercessory Prayer:
Obeys the command of our Lord.
“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another,
even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all
men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one
another.” John 13:34,35 To love means “to choose the object to
love and sacrificially dedicate oneself to its well being.” Our Lord
“commands” this, it is not optional for us to love each other. “This I
command you, that you love one another.” Jn15:17 It is a sin not
to obey His command. Praying for each other may be the easiest
way to exercise the love we are to have for one another. If this is
the case, then, not to pray for one another is the greatest way to sin
against our brothers and to disobey our Lord. “Moreover, as for
me, far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD by ceasing
to pray for you.” 1 Sam 12:23
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Follows the example of our Lord.
“Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of a heavenly calling, consider
Jesus, the Apostle and High Priest of our confession;” Heb 3:1 A
priest is one that goes between two parties, or intercedes.
“Therefore He is able also to save forever those who draw near to
God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for
them.” Heb 7:25 No one could pray more genuinely than our Lord
as He prays in Jn 17. In v 1-8 He prays for Himself, in 9-19 He
prays for His own, in 20-26 He prays for the world. “In intercession
our King upon the throne finds His highest glory: in it we shall find
our highest glory too.” (Ministry of Intercession, Andrew Murray p
5) “Therefore, He had to be made like His brethren in all things, so
that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things
pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.”
Heb 2:17 If Jesus has condescended to be made like us, how
much more should we be made like Him. We need to join with Him
in His intercessory work.
Evidences the validity of our profession.
To say we love the brethren and not to pray for them puts a
question on our profession. But the Scripture goes further, “You
also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a
holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God
through Jesus Christ.” 1 Pet 2:5 Believers are a priesthood, and
priest are to be intercessors. If we are not doing the work of a
priest, then our priesthood is in question. The principle of Mat
12.34 “For the mouth speaks out of that which fills the heart.”
applies to prayer. Most of our praying is for ourselves. Even when
we pray for our friends and family, it is a form of praying for
ourselves. The content of our prayers reveals where the care of
our heart is. “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.” Jn
14:15 To not love our brothers and pray for them is to evidence that
we do not love our Lord.
Exercises our relationship to the world.
“ I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers,
intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; For kings,
and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and
peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. For this is good and
acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour; Who will have all men to
be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth. For there is
one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ
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Jesus;” 1 Tim 2:1-5 Here the Scripture commands us to intercede
for the unsaved and even wicked rulers of the world. Sometimes
God wants to change the way governments are being run and He
want us to have a part in that by seeing and feeling the need and
asking Him for that change.
Advances the Kingdom of God.
“And He was saying to them, The harvest is plentiful, but the
laborers are few; therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to send
out laborers into His harvest.” Luke 10:2 We are to pray for labors.
Advancing the Kingdom of God is hard labor and it has eternal
results. Our Lord said “labors” not hired professionals. God will
give the wisdom and provisions, that is not to concern us. It is
laborers with warm hearts and flexible wills that get the job done.
Paul ask “Brethren, pray for us.” 1 The 5:25 Paul was always
asking for the Christians to be praying for his missionary efforts.
“The power of the Church truly to bless rests on intercession-asking and receiving heavenly gifts to carry to men.” (Ministry of
Intercession, Andrew Murray p 5)
“Let us all unite in praying to God that He would visit our souls and
fit us for that work of intercession, which is at this moment the
greatest need of the Church and the world. It is only by intercession
that power can be brought down from Heaven which will enable the
Church to conquer the world. Let us stir up the slumbering gift that
is lying unused, and seek to gather and train and band together as
many as we can, to be God's remembrancers, and to give Him no
rest till He makes His Church a joy in the earth. Nothing but intense
believing prayer can meet the intense spirit of worldliness, of which
complaint is everywhere made.” Ministry of Intercession, Andrew
Murray p 19
“Intercession is the noblest work God entrusts to us humans.” T.W.
Hunt
The heartbeat of intercession is servanthood.
Dick Eastman p 6)
++++++++++++++++++++
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(Love On Its Knees,
Joy in Prayer
Prayer can be and should be the most joyous experience this side
of Heaven. When we think of Heaven, we have to think of a place
of infinite joy. If, as Peter says of our Lord Jesus “whom not
having seen ye love; on whom, though now ye see him not, yet
believing, ye rejoice greatly with joy unspeakable and full of glory:”
1 Pet 1:8
When we are in prayer, we are in a special presence of the most
joyous person there is or can be. Nothing can diminish His joy.
God is perfect and infinite in His joy. Just as we cannot expose
ourselves to the bright rays of the sun and be unaffected by it, so
we can not expose our souls to the glory of the “Son” of God and
not be affected and changed by it. “But we all, with unveiled face
beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are transformed into
the same image from glory to glory, even as from the Lord the
Spirit.” 2 Co 3:18 So as we encounter the infinitely joyous one, we
take on an unspeakable joy. Jesus connected “prayer” and “joy”
when He said in John 16:24 “Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my
name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be made full.”
But why is it that our prayer meetings are so dull and depressing,
instead of exciting and joyous. It is expected that a prayer meeting
is the least exciting meeting that a church has. Many pastors and
churches have given up the prayer meeting and wonder why their
churches are dead and powerless. It appears to us that our
churches have become self-centered and complacent and that has
made them spiritual cadavers.
We experience “Joy” in praying when we properly order our
relationships. All persons can be grouped into one of three groups:
1. God, 2. Others, 3. Ourselves. The order in which we prioritize
these three groups determines our joy in prayer.
J Jesus
O Others
Y Yourself
J
Jesus
Communion
We are made social beings. We are to socialize horizontally with
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other humans and we are to socialize vertically with God. Prayer
should be first and foremost an active relationship and fellowship in
a social sense. Not a rehearsing of a list of wants. Our priority
should be our socially experiencing our God. It is common with the
most spiritual saints of God that they give priority to their
relationship with God, even to the point of engaging in that vertical
relationship before (that is early in the morning) they relate to
others horizontally. “Thou wilt show me the path of life: In thy
presence is fulness of joy; In thy right hand there are pleasures for
evermore.” Ps 16:11 A local church should give priority to the
prayer meeting as a personal encounter with God.
O
Others
Intercession
Most answered prayer is prayer for others. Intercession is a test as
to the genuineness of our motive in prayer. Are we most
interested in getting blessings for ourselves or for others? Do we
pray for those outside of our natural family and church family?
Paul’s testimony was “always in every supplication of mine on
behalf of you all making my supplication with joy,“ Phip 1:4
“Wherefore, my brethren beloved and longed for, my joy and crown,
so stand fast in the Lord, my beloved.” Phip 4:1 If we seek our own
joy we will miss it, but if we seek the joy and good of others, then
we will have ours. “Not that we have lordship over your faith, but
are helpers of your joy: for in faith ye stand fast.” 2 Cor 1:24
Y
Yourself
Supplication
“There is nothing wrong with asking for ourselves, if we ask last.”
Remember the principle, “So the last shall be first, and the first
last.” Mt 20:16 The Bible commands us “draw near with boldness
unto the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy, and may find
grace to help us in time of need.” Heb 4:16 Jesus commands us to
“ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be made full.” John
16:24 How can we refuse to do what will give us full joy. It seems
that our needs are a gift from God for our prayer life. We are to
come “with boldness,” which means with free speaking. As we
abide in Him we can approach God with openness and without
reservation about what we pray about. “Great is my boldness of
speech toward you, great is my glorying on your behalf: I am filled
with comfort, I overflow with joy in all our affliction.” 2 Co 7:4
“For the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but
righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.” Ro 14:17
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Our prayer meetings can be the most joyous and exciting of all of
our church services as well as the power source for its ministry.
Prayer is not given us as a burden to be borne, or an irksome duty
to fulfil, but to be a joy and power to which there is no limit. The
Kneeling Christian
The reason we do not pray as we ought is because we do not enjoy
prayer as we ought.
Lord, what a change within us one short hour
Spent in Thy presence will prevail to make!
What heavy burdens from our bosoms take,
What parched grounds refresh, as with a shower!
We kneel, and all around us seems to lower;
We rise, and all the distant and the near
Stands forth in sunny outline, brave and clear.
We kneel, how weak! we rise, how full of power!
Why, therefore, should we do ourselves this wrong,
Or others, that we are not always strong,
That we are ever overborne with care,
That we should ever weak or heartless be,
Anxious or troubled, when with us is prayer,
And joy, and strength, and courage are with Thee?
R. C. Trench
++++++++++++++++++++
Kneeology 101
The apostle Paul said “..I bow my knees unto the Father.” Eph
3:14 When praying we need to kneel in:
1. Reverence Phi 2:10 “That at the name of Jesus every knee
should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things
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under the earth;”
2. Dedication 2 Chr 6:12,13 “And he stood before the altar of
the LORD in the presence of all the congregation of Israel, and
spread forth his hands: For Solomon had made a brazen scaffold,
of five cubits long, and five cubits broad, and three cubits high, and
had set it in the midst of the court: and upon it he stood, and
kneeled down upon his knees before all the congregation of Israel,
and spread forth his hands toward heaven,”
3. Worship Ps 95:6 “ O come, let us worship and bow down: let
us kneel before the LORD our maker.”
4. Continuance Dan 6:10 “Now when Daniel knew that the
writing was signed, he went into his house; and his windows being
open in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees
three times a day, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as
he did aforetime.”
5. Confession Ezr 9:5,6 “And at the evening sacrifice I arose up
from my heaviness; and having rent my garment and my mantle, I
fell upon my knees, and spread out my hands unto the LORD my
God. And said, O my God, I am ashamed and blush to lift up my
face to thee, my God: for our iniquities are increased over our head,
and our trespass is grown up unto the heavens.”
6. Submission Isa 45:22,23 “Look unto me, and be ye saved, all
the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else. I have
sworn by myself, the word is gone out of my mouth in
righteousness, and shall not return, That unto me every knee shall
bow, every tongue shall swear.”
7. Forgiveness Ac 7:59,60 “And they stoned Stephen, calling
upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. And he
kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to
their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep.”
8. Privacy Ac 9:40 “But Peter put them all forth, and kneeled
down, and prayed; and turning him to the body said, Tabitha, arise.
And she opened her eyes: and when she saw Peter, she sat up.
9. Public Ac 21:5 “And when we had accomplished those days,
we departed and went our way; and they all brought us on our way,
with wives and children, till we were out of the city: and we kneeled
down on the shore, and prayed.”
10. Fellowship Ac 20:36,37 “And when he had thus spoken, he
kneeled down, and prayed with them all. And they all wept sore,
and fell on Paul's neck, and kissed him,”
11. Intercession Ma 17:14,15 “And when they were come to the
multitude, there came to him a certain man, kneeling down to him,
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and saying, Lord, have mercy on my son...”
12. Sincerity Mk 10:17 “And when he was gone forth into the
way, there came one running, and kneeled to him, and asked him,
Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?... and
he went away sorrowful…”
While bodily posture is secondary to the attitude of the soul, it is
instructive to note that at times Jesus prayed while standing, just
where He happened to be at the moment. At another time, He
knelt while on yet another occasion it is recorded that He fell on His
face. If the Son of God got down upon His knees, yes upon His
face before God, what attitude should we ordinary mortals assume
as we go into His presence? While posture is not everything, it is
something.
Principles and Practice of Prayer, Ivan French
Advantages of kneeling:
<>It follows Biblical examples and principles cited above.
<>It promotes humility. Sometimes a proud person kneels but it is
not his kneeling that made him proud.
<>Some say that body language is 80% of our communication. If
this is true, what does our kneeling or refusing to kneel say to God.
Making excuses for not kneeling is dangerous.
E. M. Bounds said of Edward Payson "He prayed without ceasing
and felt safe nowhere but at the throne of grace. He may be said to
have studied theology on his knees. Much of his time he spent
literally prostrated with his Bible open before him pleading the
promise...The scars on his bedroom floor testify to this fact. Next to
Payson's bed where deep grooves in the hardwood floor where his
knees had pressed repeatedly in times of travail.”
Remember: “God’s Army Marches on It’s Knees”
How dare we work for Christ without being much on our knees?
The Kneeling Christian
Lord, what a change within us one short hour
Spent in Thy presence will prevail to make!
What heavy burdens from our bosoms take,
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What parched grounds refresh, as with a shower!
We kneel, and all around us seems to lower;
We rise, and all the distant and the near
Stands forth in sunny outline, brave and clear.
We kneel, how weak! we rise, how full of power!
Why, therefore, should we do ourselves this wrong,
Or others, that we are not always strong,
That we are ever overborne with care,
That we should ever weak or heartless be,
Anxious or troubled, when with us is prayer,
And joy, and strength, and courage are with Thee?
R. C. Trench
++++++++++++++++++++
"Let us lift up our heart”
"Let us lift up our heart with our hands unto God in the heavens."
Lam 3:41 The act of prayer teaches us our unworthiness, which is
a very healthy lesson for such proud beings as we are. If God gave
us favors without constraining us to pray for them, we should never
know how poor we are; but a true prayer is an inventory of wants, a
catalogue of necessities, a revelation of hidden poverty. While it is
an application to divine wealth, it is a confession of human
emptiness. The most healthy state of a Christian is to be always
empty in self and constantly depending upon the Lord for supplies;
to be always poor in self and rich in Jesus; weak as water
personally, but mighty through God to do great exploits; and hence,
the use of prayer, because, while it adores God, it lays the creature
where it should be, in the very dust. Prayer is in itself, apart from
the answer which it brings, a great benefit to the Christian. As the
runner gains strength for the race by daily exercise, so for the great
race of life, we acquire energy by the hallowed labor of prayer.
Prayer prepares the wings of God's young eaglets, that they may
learn to mount above the clouds. Prayer girds the loins of God's
warriors, and sends them forth to combat with their sinews braced
and their muscles firm. An earnest pleader comes out of his closet,
even as the sun arises from the chambers of the east, rejoicing like
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a strong man to run his race. Prayer is that uplifted hand of Moses
which routs the Amalekites more than the sword of Joshua; it is the
arrow shot from the chamber of the prophet foreboding defeat to
the Syrians. Prayer girds human weakness with divine strength,
turns human folly into heavenly wisdom, and gives to troubled
mortals the peace of God. We know not what prayer cannot do!
We thank thee, great God, for the mercy-seat, a choice proof of thy
marvellous lovingkindness. Help us to use it aright throughout this
day!
C.H. Spurgeon Morning & Evening, October 11 AM (Revised)
What the Church needs today is not more or better machinery, not
new organizations or more and novel methods, but men whom the
Holy Ghost can use --men of prayer, men mighty in prayer. Power
Through Prayer, E. M. Bounds
Come, My Soul, Thy Suit Prepare.
Come, my soul, thy suit prepare:
Jesus loves to answer prayer;
He himself has bide thee pray,
Therefore will not say thee nay;
Therefore will not say thee nay.
Thou art coming to a King,
large petitions with thee bring;
for his grace and power are such,
none can ever ask too much;
none can ever ask too much.
With my burden I begin:
“Lord, remove this load of sin;
let thy blood, for sinners spilt,
set my conscience free of guilt;
set my conscience free of guilt.
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Lord, I come to thee for rest,
take possession of my breast;
there thy blood-bought right maintain,
and without a rival reign;
and without a rival reign.
While I am a pilgrim here,
let thy love my spirit cheer;
as my Guide, my Guard, my Friend,
lead me to my journey’s end;
lead me to my journey’s end.
Show me what I have to do,
ev’ry hour my strength renew:
let me live a life of faith,
let me die thy people’s death;
let me die thy people’s death.
John Newton, 1779; HENDON 7.7.7.7.rep; Henri A Cesar Marlan,
1827
++++++++++++++++++++
Missionary Praying
When you ask a missionary what their greatest need is, they most
often say “Pray for Us.” We usually take that request too lightly.
Their answer may be God speaking to us through them. The
Scriptures teach us to pray for missionaries. Paul consistently
asked for prayer for his missionary work; he was an Apostle by
office and a Missionary by function.
There is much debate over whether the great commission was
given "to individuals" or "to the church." Mat 28:18-20 "All authority
has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and
make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the
Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe
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all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the
end of the age." Jesus was speaking to individual believers that
were in a body of believers. The N.T. assumes that believers are in
union with a church fellowship. We think it is both. If it is one it is
of necessity the other. The church cannot do anything except
through its individual members, the fulfilling of the great
commission can only be done as a team effort and that team is the
local church.
There are three ways to fulfill the Great Commission:
1. In Person
2. In Provision
3. In Prayer
The one going in person we call a "missionary." The ones not
personally going are to supply the provision and the prayer.
It may take years for a person to get to the field, involving much
preparation and provision. But prayer is instantaneous; in it's
reaching our Father in Heaven and can be instantaneous in His
answering back to earth. The global positions of the prayor and
the prayee have no significance in the prayer process.
In lands where the Gospel has been preached, demonical activity is
minimized. In lands where the Gospel has not been preached
demonical activity is maximized. The essence of being a
missionary is the going to an unevangelized people and driving out
the demons of darkness with the light of the glorious Gospel of our
Lord Jesus Christ.
Why should we pray for missionaries?
1. Because of the nature of missionary activity.
Eph 6:12 “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but
against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of
this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the
heavenly places.
In Dan 10 names of various princes are named which were the
powers of those localities.
2. Because prayer based on God’s Word is the only weapon
man can use to touch the invisible foe.
Paul continues in Eph 6:18-20 “With all prayer and petition pray at
all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all
perseverance and petition for all the saints, and pray on my behalf,
that utterance may be given to me in the opening of my mouth, to
make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel, for which I
am an ambassador in chains; that in proclaiming it I may speak
boldly, as I ought to speak.”
3. Because God has designed that the missionary on the field
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not do his work alone.
Ex 17:8-13 “Then Amalek came and fought against Israel at
Rephidim.
So Moses said to Joshua, Choose men for us and go out, fight
against Amalek. Tomorrow I will station myself on the top of the hill
with the staff of God in my hand. Joshua did as Moses told him,
and fought against Amalek; and Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to
the top of the hill. So it came about when Moses held his hand up,
that Israel prevailed, and when he let his hand down, Amalek
prevailed. But Moses' hands were heavy. Then they took a stone
and put it under him, and he sat on it; and Aaron and Hur supported
his hands, one on one side and one on the other. Thus his hands
were steady until the sun set. So Joshua overwhelmed Amalek
and his people with the edge of the sword."
When the intercessor’s hands fall, Amalek prevails on the mission
field. None of us are strong enough to intercede by ourselves, we
need each others support, hence corporate prayer.
“Experience has repeatedly shown that the believing prayer of one
humble intercessor at home can bring about a revival on the foreign
field and save thousands. The experience of one missionary was
that, as far as man can see results, he was able to do more for the
heathen toiling as an intercessor in America than while he was
among the heathen without intercessors pleading for him.”
(Principles and Practice of Prayer, Ivan H. French)
What should we pray in praying for the missionaries?
It is hard for some of us to believe but many churches do not have
any missionaries that represent them and with whom they are
personally are involved. Mat 9:37,38 “Then He said to His disciples,
The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Therefore beseech the
Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest."
Some things that churches should pray are:
1. For some of its members to be called to the mission field.
2. For God to bring some of His laborers to them for their
provisional and prayer support.
3. For God to bring to their fellowship a foreign national for Him to
use them to convert and prepare to send to his home people.
4. For individual missionaries. Specific individuals in the church
could have responsibility for specific missionaries.
5. For specific nationals, by name, that God would save them.
6. For God to raise up nationals to evangelize their own people.
7. For the language ability and cultural interaction of the
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missionary.
8. For fresh fillings of the Holy Spirit of those on the field.
9. For the health of the missionaries in adverse environments,
being under severe strain and burden for the work.
10. For the loneliness that comes to all missionaries. They can’t go
to a friend’s house for fellowship and encouragement. Missionaries
normally separate themselves from their natural families but no
amount of distance can separate them from their Spiritual family,
their brothers and sisters in Christ.
The Lord Jesus prayed all night for the first 12 missionaries. Isn’t
that example a mandate for us? “It is a significant fact that there is
no distinct command for man to send forth missionaries. That work
was done by Christ Himself and then by His Spirit when He chose
Paul and Barnabas.” (Principles and Practice of Prayer, Ivan H.
French) Our responsibility is to pray and provide.
++++++++++++++++++++
Hudson Taylor wrote back to England from China to request ten
prayer warriors for ten struggling mission stations. Later he wrote
and informed them that seven of those ten mission stations had
miraculously revived. Someone in England, who had read both
letters, sent the letter back and told Taylor that they had been able
to find only seven prayer warriors to pray.
The missionary leaves by taking ship or plane; the intercessor
leaves by shutting the door of his closet. Principles and Practice of
Prayer, Ivan French
Paul said Rom 15:30 "Now I urge you, brethren, by our Lord
Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me
in your prayers to God for me."
Who was the first missionary?
1Joh 4:9,10 "By this the love of God was manifested in us, that
God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might
live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He
loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins."
++++++++++++++++++++
Perseverance in Prayer
1 Thess. 5:17 - "Pray without ceasing"
(From Works of Ezekiel Hopkins, 1874, Vol. 3, pp 579-581)
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1. That may be said to be done without ceasing, which is done
constantly, and at set times and seasons. So we have the word
used, Gen. 8:22: “While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest,
and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night,
shall not cease:” that is, they shall not cease, in their courses and
appointed times. So, here, “Pray without ceasing” that is, observe
a constant course of prayer, at fixed and appointed times; still
keeping yourselves from any superstitious observations. And, thus,
Exod. 29:42: the daily sacrifice is called “a continual burntoffering;” and yet it was offered up only every morning and every
evening, and yet God accounts it a continual offering. So here
“Pray” continually, or “without ceasing:” that is, keep up frequent
and appointed times for prayer, without intermission.
2. To pray without ceasing, is to pray with all importunity and
vehemence. So, in Acts 12:5, “the Church” is said to pray for Peter
“without ceasing;” that is, they were very earnest and importunate,
and would give God no rest until he heard them. So, also, in the
parable of the unjust steward, which our Saviour spake on purpose
to show how prevalent with God importunity is, Luke 18:1, it is
said, that the Lord would teach them that they “ought always to
pray:'' that is, that they ought to pray earnestly and importunity is
not giving over till they were heard. So, also, I Sam. 7:7,8 the
children of Israel entreated Samuel not to cease crying to the Lord
for them: that is, that he would improve all his interest at the throne
of grace to the utmost in their behalf. So we are bid to “pray
without ceasing:” that is, to be earnest and vehement, resolving to
take no denial at the hands of God. But yet we must do other duties
also, though we are vehement in this. We may learn how to
demean ourselves in this case towards God, by beggars who
betimes come to your doors and bring their work along with them:
they beg importunately, and yet they work betwixt whiles: so also
should we do: we should beg as importunately of God, as if we
depended merely upon his charity; and yet, betwixt whiles, we
should work as industriously as if we were ourselves to get our
livings with our own hands.
3. To “pray without ceasing,” is to improve all occasions, at every
turn, to be darting up our souls unto God in holy meditations and
ejaculations. And this we may and ought to do, when we hear or
read the word, or in whatever duty of religion we are engaged: yea,
this we may and ought to do, in our worldly employments. If your
hearts and affections be heavenly, your thoughts will force out a
passage, through the crowd and tumult of worldly businesses, to
Heaven. Ejaculations which are swift messengers, which require
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not much time to perform their errands in. For there is a holy
mystery in pointing our earthly employments with these heavenly
ejaculations, as men point their writings sometimes with stops
[periods]; even now and them shooting up a short mental prayer
unto heaven: such pauses as these are, you will find to be no
impediments to your worldly affairs. This is the way for a Christian
to be retired and private, in the midst of a multitude; to turn his shop
or his field into a closet; to trade for earth, and yet to get heaven
also into the bargain. So we read of Nehemiah 2:4, that, while the
king was discoursing to him on the state of Judea, Nehemiah
prayed unto God: that is, he sent up secret prayers to God, which,
though they escaped the king's notice and observation, yet were so
prevalent as to bow and incline his heart.
4. There is yet something more in this praying ''without ceasing.”
And that is this: we may then be said to “pray without ceasing”
when we keep our hearts in such a frame, as that we are fit at all
times to pour out our souls before God in prayer. When we keep
alive and cherish a praying spirit; and can, upon all opportunities,
draw near to God, with full souls and with lively and vigorous
affections: this is to “pray without ceasing.” And this I take to be the
most genuine, natural sense of the words, and the true scope of the
Apostle here; to have the habit of prayer, inclining them always
freely and sweetly to breathe out their requests unto God, and to
take all occasions to prostrate themselves before his throne of
grace.
++++++++++++++++++++
Pray
Big for God’s Glory
Mrs. Charles E. Cowman in Springs in the Valley reminds of us a
story about “Alexander the Great who had a famous, but indigent,
philosopher in his court who was once particularly straightened in
his circumstances. To whom should he apply but to his patron, the
conqueror of the world? His request was no sooner made than
granted. Alexander gave him a commission to receive of his
treasury whatever he wanted. He immediately demanded in his
sovereign’s name ten thousand pounds. The treasurer, surprised
at so large a demand, refused to comply, but waited upon the king
and represented the affair, adding withal how unreasonable he
thought the petition and how exorbitant the sum. Alexander
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listened with patience, but as soon as he heard the remonstrance
replied, ‘Let the money be instantly paid. I am delighted with this
philosopher’s way of thinking; he has done me a singular honor: by
the largeness of his request he shows the high idea he has
conceived both of my superior wealth and my royal munificience.’”
We can dishonor God by asking too little. Yes, He can give us a
parking place but He can also open great and unlimited fields of
Christian service. “Saints have never yet reached the limit to the
possibilities of prayer. Whatever has been attained or achieved
has touched but the fringe of the garment of a prayer-hearing God.
We honor the riches both of His power and love only by large
demands.” A. T. Pierson
We remember the story in 2 Kings 13 of Joash the king of Israel
who went to see Elisha when the prophet was dying. Elisha’s
instructions are recorded in verses 15-19, “And Elisha said unto
him, Take bow and arrows; and he took unto him bow and arrows.
And he said to the king of Israel, Put thy hand upon the bow; and
he put his hand upon it. And Elisha laid his hands upon the king's
hands. And he said, Open the window eastward; and he opened it.
Then Elisha said, Shoot; and he shot. And he said, Jehovah's arrow
of victory, even the arrow of victory over Syria; for thou shalt smite
the Syrians in Aphek, till thou have consumed them. And he said,
Take the arrows; and he took them. And he said unto the king of
Israel, Smite upon the ground; and he smote thrice, and stayed.
And the man of God was wroth with him, and said, Thou shouldest
have smitten five or six times: then hadst thou smitten Syria till thou
hadst consumed it, whereas now thou shalt smite Syria but thrice.”
God’s wants to give us more victory than we ask for. “We have not
because we ask not.” Ja 4:2
Asking too little not only limits the blessings we get from God, but
also limits the glory He gets out of our lives. We forget that He “is
able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think.”
Eph 3:20
When asking someone for help, we are embarrassed and careful
not to ask for too much. We know others are limited and we don’t
want to strain or be burdensome to them. When we come to pray,
we act as if God is limited or stingy with His blessings. We ask as if
we were afraid to ask “BIG”. We seem to be content with creature
comforts, our daily bread and the physical health of ourselves and
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our friends, when we should be praying for God to do great and
mighty things in the advancement of His kingdom. Why pray for a
good attendance at church Sunday when we can pray for a great
ingathering of souls across our nation. Why just pray for lost family
members when we could be praying for the lost around the world.
God’s kingdom is bigger than our church or denomination.
God can not give too much, or run out of supplies, or be found
unable to accomplish His will. All we have to do is to abide in Him
and “And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye
shall receive.” Mt 21:22
Did God make this world and all things in it and does He not
continue to sustain and govern it? It is without question that such
an Omnipotent God could not be strained with our request.
The problem with our praying is not that we ask for too much, but
that we don’t ask for enough. God is more glorified when He does
greater and more unusual things, especially those that the world
can see.
Thou art coming to a King,
Large petitions with thee bring;
For his grace and power are such
–John Newton
None can ever ask too much.
“Nothing is beyond the reach of prayer except that which was out of
the will of God.” Prayer Power Unlimited, J. Oswald Sanders
++++++++++++++++++++
Prayer--What it Does
Pleads the Name of Jesus
Jn 14:13,14 “Whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, so that
the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask Me anything in
My name, I will do it.”
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Regards the Work of Jesus
Heb 10:19-22 “ Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to
enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way
which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh, and
since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw
near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our
hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies
washed with pure water.”
Abides in the Person of Jesus
Jn 15:4-11 “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear
fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless
you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches; he who
abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me
you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is thrown
away as a branch and dries up; and they gather them, and cast
them into the fire and they are burned. If you abide in Me, and My
words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for
you. My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so
prove to be My disciples. Just as the Father has loved Me, I have
also loved you; abide in My love. If you keep My commandments,
you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father’s
commandments and abide in His love. These things I have spoken
to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made
full.”
Yields to the Will of Jesus
1 Jn 5:14,15 “This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if
we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that
He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests
which we have asked from Him.”
Expects Fulfillment of Promise
2 Cor 1:18-20 “But as God is faithful, our word to you is not yes
and no. For the Son of God, Christ Jesus, who was preached
among you by us—by me and Silvanus and Timothy—was not yes
and no, but is yes in Him. For as many as are the promises of God,
in Him they are yes; therefore also through Him is our Amen to the
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glory of God through us.”
Remembers the Conditions
2 Cor 7:1 “Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse
ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the
fear of God.”
No time to pray!
No time to pray!
O, who so fraught with earthly care
As not to give a humble prayer
Some part of day!
No time to pray!
What heart so clean, so pure within,
That needeth not some check from sin.
Needs not to pray?
No time to pray?
‘Mid each day’s dangers, what retreat
More needful than the mercy seat?
Who need not pray?
No time to pray!
Must care or business’ urgent call
So press us as to take it all,
Each passing day?
What thought more drear
Than that our God His face should hide,
And say, through all life’s swelling tide,
No time to hear!
Anonymous
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++++++++++++++++++++
Praying for Preaching
We speak to God in prayer and God speaks to us in and through
the Word of God.
I. God’s Method
Our Lord commanded us to preach, “He said to them, ‘Go into all
the world and preach the gospel to every creature.’” Mk 16:15 Paul
understood this “For the message about the cross is foolishness to
those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the
power of God...For since in the wisdom of God, the world by its
wisdom did not know God, God was pleased to save those who
believe by the foolishness of preaching...but we preach about a
crucified Christ, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to
Gentiles. But to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks,
Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God.” 1 Cor 1:18-25
Sometimes it is difficult to know God’s will and how to pray, but
when it comes to preaching there is no doubt about what God
wants. His revealed will is for us to carry out His method of
advancing His kingdom, preaching the Word. Jesus said “Ye have
not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye
should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain:
that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give
it you.” Jn 15:16 Here our Lord connects prayer and preaching
with “whatsoever you ask.” If one man says to another man
“whatsoever” that is generous enough, but when God says
“whatsoever” it is truly unlimited.
Paul told the Romans “Thus I am eager also to preach the gospel
to you who are in Rome. For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it
is God’s power for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew
first and also to the Greek.” Rom 1:15-16 Do we really want to see
the unsaved converted? God says that the Gospel preached is His
power to salvation. Then what should we do? Answer: Pray for
preaching and those who preach. We thank God that we still have
the freedom to preach the Word of God. We should pray for
specific preaching opportunities, for God to call men to preach, for
people to come to preaching. For the anointing of the Holy Spirit on
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the preaching of the Word.
II. God’s Messenger
Paul repeatedly asked for others to pray for his preaching. “That the
true apostolic preacher must have the prayers of other good people
to give to his ministry its full quota of success. Paul is a preeminent
example. He asks, he covets, he pleads in an impassioned way for
the help of all God’s saints. He knew that in the spiritual realm, as
elsewhere, in union there is strength; that the concentration and
aggregation of faith, desire, and prayer increased the volume of
spiritual force until it became overwhelming and irresistible in its
power. Units of prayer combined, like drops of water, make an
ocean which defies resistance. So Paul, with his clear and full
apprehension of spiritual dynamics, determined to make his
ministry as impressive, as eternal, as irresistible as the ocean, by
gathering all the scattered units of prayer and precipitating them on
his ministry. May not the solution of Paul's preeminence in labors
and results, and impress on the Church and the world, be found in
this fact that he was able to center on himself and his ministry more
of prayer than others? To his brethren at Rome he wrote: ‘Now I
beseech you, brethren, for the Lord Jesus Christ's sake, and for the
love of the Spirit, that ye strive together with me in prayers to God
for me.’ To the Ephesians he says: ‘Praying always with all prayer
and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all
perseverance and supplication for all saints; and for me, that
utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly,
to make known the mystery of the gospel.’ To the Colossians he
emphasizes: ‘Withal praying also for us, that God would open unto
us a door of utterance, to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I
am also in bonds: that I may make it manifest as I ought to speak.’
To the Thessalonians he says sharply, strongly: ‘Brethren, pray for
us.’ Paul calls on the Corinthian Church to help him: ‘Ye also
helping together by prayer for us.’ This was to be part of their work.
They were to lay to the helping hand of prayer. He in an additional
and closing charge to the Thessalonian Church about the
importance and necessity of their prayers says: ‘Finally, brethren,
pray for us, that the word of the Lord may have free course, and be
glorified, even as it is with you: and that we may be delivered from
unreasonable and wicked men.’ He impresses the Philippians that
all his trials and opposition can be made subservient to the spread
of the gospel by the efficiency of their prayers for him. Philemon
was to prepare a lodging for him, for through Philemon’s prayer
Paul was to be his guest..Paul’s attitude on this question illustrates
his humility and his deep insight into the spiritual forces which
project the gospel. More than this, it teaches a lesson for all times,
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that if Paul was so dependent on the prayers of God's saints to give
his ministry success, how much greater the necessity that the
prayers of God's saints be centered on the ministry of today!” E. M.
Bounds
“If some Christians that have been complaining of their ministers
had said and acted less before men and had applied themselves
with all their might to cry to God for their ministers -- had, as it were,
risen and stormed heaven with their humble, fervent and incessant
prayers for them -- they would have been much more in the way of
success.” Jonathan Edwards
Spurgeon said much about others praying. “The preacher, no
matter how brilliant, godly, or eloquent, has no power without the
Spirit's help: The bell in the steeple may be well hung, fairly
fashioned, and of soundest metal, but it is dumb until the ringer
makes it speak. And ...the preacher has no voice of quickening for
the dead in sin, or of comfort for living saints unless the divine spirit
gives him a gracious pull, and begs him speak with power. Hence
the need of prayer for both preacher and hearers.”
“As prayer meetings fail in a congregation, so will the ministrations
of the pastor become unfruitful, the preaching of the word fail to
convert sinners and promote holiness in the professors of religion.”
The Prayer Meeting and Its History, J. B. Johnston
God has not changed His methods. The modern techniques of
today’s churches are not in accordance with God’s method and He
has no obligation to honor them, but He will honor the preaching of
His Word. We must pray for preaching, and our brothers that
preach and those who hear.
++++++++++++++++++++
The Pray-er’s Attitude
What is the attitude of the heart of one that is truly praying?
Following are some attitudes that we should strive for.
Prayer is a duty.
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Duty is not the highest of motives, but it is a legitimate one and a
good one. Jesus said that men ought always to pray. Luke 18:1
We call Jesus “Lord.” How can we call Him Lord and fail to do what
He says (Luke 6:46)? That which is done from a sense of duty
(obedience) soon becomes delight.
Prayer is a privilege.
It is none other than Almighty God who invites us to pray Jer. 33:3,
Jesus Christ, the second person of the Triune God, who has made
it possible for us to pray John 14:6; Heb. 10:19, 20 Holy Spirit, the
third person of the Triune God, who has come to assist us in our
praying (Rom. 8:26, 27). Does not the opportunity extended to us,
unworthy sinners, fill us with a sense of privilege as we approach
the throne of grace?
Prayer must be in humility.
No one has the inherent right to enter into the presence of God and
petition Him. That right was forfeited by sin and reclaimed for us at
the great price of the death of Jesus Christ. Correct views of our
own depravity, the graces extended to us and the sinfulness of our
hearts (Jer. 17:9) will remove all arrogance and enable us to
approach God boldly (Heb. 4:16), yet humbly (Luke 18:13).
Prayer must be in submission.
Prayer that pleases the Father is that which is offered to Him in the
spirit of His own Son, "Yet not My will, but Thine be done" (Luke
22:42, NASB). But God, for great and wise reasons, denied
requests of Moses, Elijah, and Paul. In every case, His denial
issued in greater blessing. The logic of submission is simply God's
wisdom. He knows me, the way ahead and the thing that is best.
Therefore, I rest in Him (Phil. 4:6, 7).
Prayer must be in fervency.
Too much of our praying is perfunctory, even lackadaisical. It lacks
real seriousness, genuine desire and fervent longing: Elijah prayed
earnestly James 5:16, 17, Moses prayed pleadingly Ex. 32:11-13,
31,32; 33:12-16, Daniel prayed intensely Dan. 9:17-19, Paul
prayed agonizingly Rom. 15:30; Gal. 4:19, Jesus prayed
persistently Matt. 26:39-44.
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We should give all diligence to develop these attitudes in our prayer
Revised from Principles and Practice of Prayer, Ivan French
chapter 12 Attitudes and Approaches in Prayer
“A great part of my time is spent in getting my heart in tune for
prayer.”
Robert Murray McCheyne
Teach Me to Pray, Lord
Teach me to pray Lord, teach me to pray,
This is my heart cry day unto day;
I long to know Thy will and Thy way;
Teach me to pray Lord, teach me to pray.
Power in prayer, Lord, power in prayer,
Here ‘mid earth’s sin and sorrow and care;
Men lost and dying, souls in despair;
O give me power, power in prayer.
My weakened will, Lord, teach me to pray;
My sinful nature Thou canst subdue;
Fill me just now with power anew,
Power to pray and power to do!
Teach me to pray Lord, teach me to pray;
Thou art my Pattern, day unto day;
Thou art my surety, now and for aye;
Teach me to pray, Lord, teach me to pray.
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Refrain:
Living in Thee, Lord and Thou in me;
Constant abiding, this is my plea;
Grant me Thy power, boundless and free:
Power with men and with power with Thee.
Words and music by Albert S. Reitzd; copyright 1925, renewal
Broadman Press. All rights reserved. Used by permission
++++++++++++++++++++
Pray the Lord of the Harvest
Matt 9:35-38 “And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages,
teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the
kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. When he
saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were
harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he
said to his disciples, ‘The harvest is he plentiful, but the laborers
are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send
out laborers into his harvest.”
We are to pray for laborers. “The power of the Church truly to bless
rests on intercession–asking and receiving heavenly gifts to carry to
men.” (Ministry of Intercession, Andrew Murray, p 5) Advancing
the Kingdom of God is hard labor and it has eternal consequences.
Our Lord said “laborers” not hired professionals. God will give the
wisdom and provisions, that is not to concern us. It is laborers with
warm hearts and flexible wills that get the job done.
Laborers are simply to do what they are told when they are told.
Sometimes without explanations or understanding. They are not
managers or executives. The employer or Lord of the harvest is
responsible to know what they should do and what to do with the
results of the laborer. Laborers many times are not professionals.
They have basic skills that they develop with experience and use to
their Master’s benefit. Paul was always asking for the Christians to
be praying for his missionary efforts. “Brethren, pray for us.” 1
Thess 5:25 Paul considered himself to be sent out into the harvest.
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The word here for “send out” is the same word to casting out
demons. It means to cast or send out. Sometimes it is used to refer
to being deprived of the power and influence one exercises in the
world or to expel a person from a society: to banish from a family,
to draw out with force, tear out with implication of force overcoming
opposite force; to cause a thing to move straight on its intended
goal; to reject with contempt, to cast off or away, to lead one forth
or away somewhere with a force which he cannot resist. This
language is many times an accurate description of how God puts
His people to work in His kingdom and some of the circumstances
and reactions encountered in that process.
The church, its members and leaders, is to pray for laborers in two
areas:
1. For itself. The local church needs a variety of gifts and graces
to be manifested in its weekly and daily life. There needs to be
continual prayer that the Lord of the harvest would raise up and
send forth individuals in the body to “do the work of the ministry.”
The pastor is not to do some of everything or all of anything. A
healthy and spiritual body life involves everyone, each according to
his giftedness laboring where the Master wants them. When God
gives the laborers, it is the responsibility of the rest of the church to
recognize and support them in their God ordained tasks.
2. For the fulfillment of the great commission. Fulfilling the
great commission “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the
Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have you.” (Mat
28:19,20) is our great responsibility. “All nations” include our own
not just those across the ocean. This charge includes all the
organizational and support functions necessary to fulfill it. Laborers
are needed for every part of this endeavor and we are charged to
pray for them to be sent and sustained in the work. We can not
muster the work force, only God can do that, but He has
commanded us to pray and in this way be part of the cause of
making it happen.
We are hypocrites if we pray for others to go and are not willing to
go ourselves. If we rejoice when the children others are going out
and are glad when our children are staying close to us, then we are
double-minded and grieve the Holy Spirit. A laborer is a laborer
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regardless of where he is laboring. The Master of the harvest
wants us to be faithful to the task He assigns us. Note the last
words of our text, “ into his harvest.” It is His work and it cannot fail.
It is our privilege to have a part. Our function is two-fold. 1.
Execute the task assigned us to His glory. 2. Requisition a
multitude of additional laborers to carry the work on for His
unlimited glory.
Hudson Taylor wrote back to England from China requesting ten
prayer warriors for ten struggling mission stations. Later he wrote
and informed them that seven of those ten mission stations had
miraculously revived. Someone in England, who had read both
letters, sent the letter back and told Taylor that they had been able
to find only seven prayer warriors to pray.
In 1860 while in England, recovering from sickness, Taylor wrote “I
had a growing conviction that God would have me seek from Him
the needed workers and go forth with them ... In the study of the
divine Word, I learned that to obtain successful workers, not
elaborate appeals for help, but first earnest prayer to God to thrust
forth laborers, and second the deepening of the spiritual life of the
Church, so that men should be unable to stay at home, were what
was needed...I had no doubt but that if I prayed for fellow-workers,
in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, they would be given. I had no
doubt but that, in answer to such prayer, the means for our going
forth would be provided, and that doors would be opened before us
in unreached parts of the Empire.” Hudson Taylor’s Spiritual
Secret, p 110
Send Thou, O Lord, to every place
Swift messengers before Thy face,
The heralds of Thy wondrous grace,
Where Thou, Thyself, wilt come.
Send men whose eyes have seen the King,
Men in whose ears His sweet words ring,
Send such Thy lost ones home to bring:
Send them where Thou wilt come—
To bring good news to souls in sin,
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The bruised and broken hearts to win,
In every place to bring them in,
Where Thou, Thyself, wilt come.
Gird each one with the Spirit’s sword,
The sword of Thine own deathless Word,
And make them conquerors, conquering Lord,
Where Thou, Thyself, wilt come.
Raise up, O Lord the Holy Ghost,
From this broad land a mighty host,
Their war cry–We will seek the lost,
Where Thou, O Christ, wilt come!
A Member of the China Inland Mission, Hudson Taylor’s Spiritual
Secret, p 251
++++++++++++++++++++
Prayer, What It Is
The Empty Hand Of Need
Mat 8:2,3 “And a leper approached, and bowed low before him,
saying, ‘Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.’ 3 He
stretched out his hand and touched him saying, ‘I am willing. Be
clean!’ Immediately his leprosy was cleansed.”
The Cry Of Despair
Ps 107:1-28 “Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, and his loyal
love endures! 2 Let those delivered by the LORD speak out, those
whom he delivered from the power of the enemy, 3 and gathered
from foreign lands, from east and west, from north and south. 4
They wandered through the wilderness on a desert road; they
found no city in which to live. 5 They were hungry and thirsty; they
fainted from exhaustion. 6 They cried out to the LORD in their
distress; he delivered them from their troubles. 7 He led them on a
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level road, that they might find a city in which to live. 8 Let them
give thanks to the LORD for his loyal love, and for the amazing
things he has done for people! 9 For he has satisfied those who
thirst, and those who hunger he has filled with food. 10 They sat in
utter darkness, bound in painful iron chains, 11 because they had
rebelled against God’s commands, and rejected the instructions of
the sovereign king. 12 So he used suffering to humble them; they
stumbled and no one helped them up. 13 They cried out to the
LORD in their distress; he delivered them from their troubles. 14 He
brought them out of the utter darkness, and tore off their shackles.
15 Let them give thanks to the LORD for his loyal love, and for the
amazing things he has done for people! 16 For he shattered the
bronze gates,and hacked through the iron bars. 17 They acted like
fools in their rebellious ways, and suffered because of their sins. 18
They lost their appetite for all food, and they drew near the gates of
death. 19 They cried out to the LORD in their distress;
he delivered them from their troubles. 20 He sent them an assuring
word and healed them; he rescued them from the pits where they
were trapped. 21 Let them give thanks to the LORD for his loyal
love, and for the amazing things he has done for people! 22 Let
them present thank offerings, and loudly proclaim what he has
done! 23 Some traveled on the sea in ships, and carried cargo
over the vast waters. 24 They witnessed the acts of the LORD, his
amazing feats on the deep water. 25 He gave the order for a
windstorm, and it stirred up the waves of the sea. 26 They reached
up to the sky, then dropped into the depths. The sailors’ strength
left them because the danger was so great. 27 They swayed and
staggered like a drunk, and all their skill proved ineffective. 28 They
cried out to the LORD in their distress; he delivered them from their
troubles.”
The Key To Heaven Supplies
Ac 4:31 “When they had prayed, the place where they were
assembled together was shaken, and they were all filled with the
Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God courageously. ”
The Hedge Of Protection
Neh 6:9 “They all were wanting to scare us, supposing, “Their
hands will grow slack from the work, and it won’t get done.” So
now, strengthen my hands!”
The Sap Of Fruitfulness
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Jn 15:7,8 “If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask
whatever you want, and it will be done for you. 8 My Father is
honored by this, that you bear much fruit and show that you are
my disciples.”
The Companion Of Praise
Ac 16:25 “About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing
hymns to God, and the rest of the prisoners were listening to
them.”
NET
++++++++++++++++++++
Prevenient Praying
The word “prevenient” means to go before, to prepare the way.
Sometimes an army will make a “pre-emptive strike” to get the
advantage over the enemy. Some times they will send “special
forces” in ahead of the regular solders to prepare the way. Another
term to describe this kind of action is “pro-active.” “Prevenient
praying” then, is to go before and prepare the way by praying. We
don’t wait until something happens but we seek God’s will and pray
and work to bring it about. In the hussels and hassels of life we
sometimes let ourselves live under the “tyranny of the urgent.”
Always reacting to one emergency and then another.
Sometimes our prayer life becomes one of praying for one trouble
then another, after they have become troublesome. Certainly we
should pray concerning our troubles, this is one of the reasons we
have trouble, to make us pray. But if we are always on the
defensive, we won’t be gaining much ground. Someone has said
the life is over 90% reaction to our circumstances and less than
10% action that we initiate ourselves. There is something here for
us to consider in relation to praying. We certainly have the
responsibility to pray for the unsaved, the sick and afflicted,
believers in sin, etc. But, the well rounded prayer life (individually
and corporately) will go beyond the pressing problems of the
moment and carry us into the future with an eye for God’s glory.
Some Biblical examples of prevenient or proactive praying are:
1.
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Our Lord taught us to pray saying, to our Father “your kingdom
come, may your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven. Give us
today our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we ourselves
have forgiven our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, but
deliver us from the evil one.” Mat 6:9-13 Much of what He
mentions here is not a reaction to a problem but deals with things
that are not but ought to be, “kingdom come,” “daily bread” seems
to be a reference to the coming day, but especially, “do not lead us
into temptation.” Jesus is teaching us to pray “Preveniently,”
before the fact, that we should not be taken into tempting, trying,
and testing times that might hinder our service for God. What is the
greatest danger to need protection from? It can be none other than
sin. Each of us has the cancer of sin within us. Jesus is teaching
us to pray for protection from temptation. We should be praying
that God, in His providence, will not allow us to be drawn away by
our own sinful nature from Him into sin. Every Christian needs to
pray this prayer.
2.
When we pray for the Lord of the harvest to send labours we are
praying pro-actively and preveniently. Ma 9:37, 38 “Then he said
to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few.
Therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into his
harvest.” We know there is much to be done so we pray for God to
call and prepare believers to get the job done.
3.
“And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my
church, and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.” Mat 16:18
Jesus said that the gates of Hell will not prevail against the church;
this implies that we are attacking the gates of Hell, that is being on
the offensive. This involves praying before the fact. Isn’t this what
we are doing when we send missionaries into heathen lands?
4.
When Jesus was praying the night before His crucifixion, He
prayed; “I pray not that thou shouldest take them from the world,
but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil one. They are not
of the world even as I am not of the world. ” Jn 17:15,16 Jesus
knew that Satan would try to destroy us so He prayed before the
fact that we would be safe. We should take great comfort in our
Lord’s praying for us and pray for one another in this way.
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5.
When Paul was telling the Roman Christians what he was praying
about, he said “and I always ask in my prayers, if perhaps now at
last I may succeed in visiting you in the will of God.” Rom 1:10 He
was praying for safe travel and the opportunity to see them and be
a spiritual help to them.
6.
Paul told the Philippians, “Do not be anxious about anything.
Instead, tell your requests to God in your every prayer and
petition—with thanksgiving. And the peace of God that surpasses
all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.”
Phil 4:6 Being thankful will preempt discouragement. “This preanswer gratitude is a preemptive strike against bitterness and
disappointment over how and when our heavenly Father chooses
us answer. Also, it is an expression of enormous faith to thank Him
in advance of His response. Our understanding that He will always
do right by our petitions prompts us to be grateful to Him before
they are answered.” Developing your Secret Closet of Prayer,
Richard Burr, p 114.
7.
“Finally, pray for us, brothers and sisters, that the Lord’s message
may spread quickly and be honored as in fact it was among you,” 2
Thes 3:1 We don’t want the preaching of God’s Word to be
ineffective so we pray He would empower His Word to work in the
hearts of men.
8.
“Praying ahead of our exploits for God allows us to command an
offensive position against our adversary. Prevenient praying
precludes presumption by ‘covering all the bases.’ ...Prevenient
prayer in the corporate setting assumes a special significance. The
Scriptures often speak of the church as the army of God. God’s
plan is for His army to establish His Kingdom on earth. Lone
warriors, however gifted, will never accomplish His purposes. In
corporate prayer every member of the body assembles on the front
lines of the outreach effort.” The Praying Church, Sue Curran 95.
The more preveniently and proactively we pray, the more efficiently
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we will be in our prayer life and the more we will advance the
Kingdom of God into new territority, claiming it for God.
++++++++++++++++++++
The School of Prayer Part 1
“Lord teach us to pray.” Lk 11:1
As the disciples made the above request so should we. Some
have said that prayer can not be taught, it must be “caught” or
learned by experience. But this was not Jesus’ answer. He
immediately began to teach them. The following is from Ole
Hallesby’s book on Prayer, 161f.
“So few of us become sanctified and skilled petitioners because we
do not continue in the school of prayer...There is something about
this school which tries our patience sorely. Jesus Himself alludes
to it on several occasions, especially in Luke 18:1-8, where He says
‘that they ought always to pray and not faint…’
“It is the Spirit of prayer who superintends the instruction in the
school of prayer. He does not offer a variety of subjects, but
concentrates purposely on a few central things. It is not necessary
to master a large variety of subjects in order to become skilled in
prayer...
“In the first place, the Spirit must be given an opportunity to reveal
Christ to us every day. This is absolutely essential. Christ is such
that we need only ‘see’ Him, and prayer will rise from our hearts.
Voluntary prayer, confident prayer. We know that Christ can
answer prayer. We know also that it gives Him joy to do so. Prayer
and intercession have become a delightful and fascinating means
of co-operation between Christ and the praying soul. The
instruction which the Spirit imparts has as its aim the removal of
everything which hinders Him from revealing Christ in our hearts...
“In the second place, the instruction which the Spirit imparts, aims
at making us earnestly solicitous. Intercessory prayer is like an
ellipse, which rotates about two definite points: Christ and our need.
The work of the Spirit in connection with prayer is to show us both,
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not merely theoretically, but practically, making them vital to us
from day to day. Comfort yourself with the thought that it is the
Spirit who is working these things in your heart every day. It is not
necessary for you to strive in your own strength to keep your eyes
open to Christ and the needs of the world. No, all you need to do is
to listen to the Spirit as He speaks to you every day in the Word
and through prayer about Christ and your need, and you will soon
notice yourself making progress both in prayer and in intercession.
“In the third place, the Spirit teaches us the necessity of selfdenial in connection with prayer.There is something about prayer
and intercession which calls for more self-denial than any other
work to which the Spirit calls us. The greater part of the work of
intercession is, of course, done in secret; and work of this kind
requires the expenditure of greater effort than work which can be
seen of men. It is astonishing to see how much it means to us to
have others see what we do. It is not only that we all have a great
weakness for the praise of others, but the fact that our work is
appreciated and valued is a remarkable stimulant to us.
“Furthermore, we all love to see results from our labors. But the
work of prayer is of such a nature that it is impossible for us always
to know definitely whether what happens is a fruit of our own
intercession or that of others.
“Both of these facts call for a great deal of self-denial in connection
with prayer...
“In the fine and difficult art of prayer, intercession is undoubtedly
the most difficult of accomplishment. As far as my understanding of
these things goes, intercessory prayer is the finest and most
exacting kind of work that it is possible for men to perform.”
The request “Lord teach us to pray” is itself a prayer. Our Lord
began immediately to answer that prayer in the following verses.
We need to ask our Lord, and the Holy Spirit, to teach us to pray
and be ready for Him to do so. Our Lord’s lesson on “Praying”
included three things: 1. an outline for the contents of prayer in
verses 2-4, 2. the need for persistence, in verses 5-10, and 3.
encouragement that the Father will give us the one thing needed in
verses 11-13.
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“Jesus taught his disciples that the highest exercise of prayer was
in obtaining God’s divinest bestowment, the gift of the Holy Spirit.”
Lk 11:13 William Patton
“Prayer is an art which only the Spirit can teach us. He is the giver
of all prayer.” C. H. Spurgeon
“The biggest thing God ever did for me was to teach me to pray in
the Spirit.” Samuel Chadwick
O Lord, by Whom ye come to God,
The Life, the Truth, the Way,
The path of prayer Thyself hast trod;
Lord, teach us now to pray.
Teach Me to Pray, Lord
Teach me to pray Lord, teach me to pray,
This is my heart cry day unto day;
I long to know Thy will and Thy way;
Teach me to pray Lord, teach me to pray.
Power in prayer, Lord, power in prayer,
Here ‘mid earth’s sin and sorrow and care;
Men lost and dying, souls in despair;
O give me power, power in prayer.
My weakened will, Lord, teach me to pray;
My sinful nature Thou canst subdue;
Fill me just now with power anew,
Power to pray and power to do!
Teach me to pray Lord, teach me to pray;
Thou art my Pattern, day unto day;
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Thou art my surety, now and for aye;
Teach me to pray, Lord, teach me to pray.
REFRAIN
Living in Thee, Lord and Thou in me;
Constant abiding, this is my plea;
Grant me Thy power, boundless and free:
Power with men and with power with Thee.
Words and music by Albert S. Reitzd; copyright 1925, renewal
Broadman Press.
++++++++++++++++++++
The School of Prayer Part 2:The Content of Prayer
The request “Lord teach us to pray,” in Lk 11:1 is itself a prayer.
Our Lord immediately answered that prayer in the following verses.
He gives three lessons on “Praying”: 1. An outline for the contents
of prayer in verses 2-4, 2. The need for persistence, in verses 510, and 3. Encouragement that the Father will give us the one
thing needed in verses 11-13.
Let us look at the first lesson in our Lord’s teaching on praying.
“And he said unto them, When ye pray, say, Father, Hallowed be
thy name. Thy kingdom come. Give us day by day our daily bread.
And forgive us our sins; for we ourselves also forgive every one
that is indebted to us. And bring us not into temptation.” These
words are repeated in corporate worship thousands of times each
Lord’s day. We feel that the greatest value in this prayer is not the
saying of the words but in what it suggests for content in our
prayers; either public, corporate, or private. The first part centers
around the person of God. The Second part concerns our need.
The Person of God: “Father, Hallowed be thy name.” The most
basic thing about prayer is that, is a conversation between two
persons, a child and a Father. Our prayer must be addressed to
God alone Who is our Father in creation, election, and sanctifying
grace. The first thing we should talk about in prayer is God
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Himself. We should “hallow” or sanctify His name, meaning “to
separate from profane things and dedicate to God.” Sanctifying His
name is not making Him holy but is acknowledging, and declaring
Him to be holy, and glorifying Him, and all His perfections. Isa 12:4
“And in that day shall ye say, Give thanks unto Jehovah, call upon
his name, declare his doings among the peoples, make mention
that his name is exalted.” Eph 1:3 “Blessed be the God and Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with every spiritual
blessing in the heavenly places in Christ:”
The Plan of God: “Thy kingdom come.” The kingdom is
essentially the “rule of God”. We are to pray for God’s will to be
realized. Where? In our society, church, family, and personal life.
There is an underlining issue of authority here. God has the “right”
to rule in all areas of everyone’s life. To pray this we must be in
submission to God, lest we be hypocrites. Ps 47:7,8 “For God is
the King of all the earth: Sing ye praises with understanding. God
reigneth over the nations: God sitteth upon his holy throne.” The
kingdom of God does not come with observation and is within us,
Lk 17:20,21, but it is also something to be seen, Jn 3:3.
The Provision of God: “Give us day by day our daily bread.”
This subject of our praying too often becomes the main thrust of our
prayer and even the only concern in our prayer. But in its proper
place it is a necessary part of prayer. The reference is to “daily
bread” not “daily caviar.” Php 4:19 “God shall supply every need of
yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” Jam 4:2
“...ye have not, because ye ask not.“
The Pardon of God : “And forgive us our sins; for we ourselves
also forgive every one that is indebted to us.” Pardon or
forgiveness is necessary to prayer in three ways: 1. The fact of our
being pardoned, or forgiven for our sin, 2. The realization of that
fact in our consciences and 3. Practicing forgiveness in our
relationships with others. Jesus is linking our forgiveness from God
with our forgiveness to others. Mat 18:21-35
The Protection of God: “And bring us not into temptation.” What
is the greatest danger to need protection from? It can be none
other than sin. Each of us has the cancer of sin within us. Jesus is
teaching us to pray for protection from temptation. This might be
called “preemptive praying.” “Let no man say when he is tempted, I
am tempted of God; for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he
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himself tempteth no man: but each man is tempted, when he is
drawn away by his own lust, and enticed.” Jam 1:13,14 We should
be praying that God, in His providence, will not allow us to be
drawn away by our own sinful nature from Him into sin. Every
Christian needs to pray this prayer. The psalmist said, “...I will fear
no evil; for thou art with me.” Ps 23:4
The words of verses 2-4 is a “pattern prayer;” it is not the real
prayer. The real prayer is that which we pray following this
example. The difference is like the difference between a “cookie
cutter” and a “cookie.” Just as a “cookie cutter” is not acceptable
food, neither is the mere repetition of these words acceptable to
God as real prayer. The cutter gives design and development to
the cookie as this model prayer does to our prayers. What may be
most important in this model prayer is the order of these ideas. That
is, making God’s glory and will come before our needs. When we
are praying (privately or corporately), it would be good to follow
these topics in the order that Jesus has given them.
++++++++++++++++++++
Three Biblical Principles for Corporate Prayer
1. The Family Principle
The church is the family of God. In any family it is right and proper
for all the children to make requests of their parent. It can be
expected that the request will have a considerable impact upon the
will and emotions of the parent. Using this as an analogy in the
spiritual realm, we are reminded that it is appropriate for the
children to petition their heavenly Father.
In a family there is “bi-directional love” which is vertical and
horizontal. There is a vertical love between the parent(s) and the
children. We see in 1 Joh 3:1 “See how great a love the Father
has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and
such we are. For this reason the world does not know us, because
it did not know Him.”
There is a horizontal love between the children. Jesus says in
John 14:34,35: “A new commandment I give to you, that you love
one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one
another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you
have love for one another.” The standard is given by our Lord in
John 15:12 “This is My commandment, that you love one another,
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just as I have loved you.”
As we pray to our loving Father we will not want anything that He
does not want for us. As we pray we will be concerned for our
brothers and sisters around the world and pray for them. When
they hurt, we hurt; when they rejoice, we rejoice.
2. The Body Principle
The body life is realized when each individual part or member of the
body is living in contact with the head and function as the head
directs.
In 1 Cor 12 we are taught that the local church is the Body of
Christ. “For even as the body is one and yet has many members,
and all the members of the body, though they are many, are one
body, so also is Christ.” 1 Cor 12: 12 When a body is in a state of
good health, all of its parts function harmoniously and according to
their intended purpose. So when the members of the spiritual
Body, the church, are functioning harmoniously with their Head and
with each other, it may be expected that the Body will accomplish
it’s intended purpose for the Kingdom of God in this world.
Act 12:1-25 tells of how Peter was put in prison, “4 When he had
seized him, he put him in prison, delivering him to four squads of
soldiers to guard him, intending after the Passover to bring him out
before the people. 5 So Peter was kept in the prison, but prayer for
him was being made fervently by the church to God.” The church
prayed and the angel was sent to deliver Peter. The application of
this principle to a praying church is both individual and corporate.
Individually each believer is to pray to God personally and
privately. He is to maintain his own prayer life. At the same time
he is to maintain corporate or partner praying with his fellow
believers. Just as each organ in a physical body performs its
function, so each believer fulfills his responsibility and joins in
prayer as they commune with God. This could be in pairs, in small
groups, or in the entire corporate body prayer meeting.
3. The Unity Principle
When we pray in unity, we need to: 1. Recognize that our life
comes only from our Father and thank Him for giving us that life.
Joh 1:13 “who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh
nor of the will of man, but of God. ” 2. Recognize our dependence
upon him. We must be in agreement that we can do nothing
without Him
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In Mat 18:19 we have an outstanding promise: “if two of you agree
on earth about anything that they may ask, it shall be done for them
by My Father who is in heaven.” Even though the context of this
verse has specific reference to procedural matters in the church,
the principle carries over into other areas of our life. When we
come to God united and agreeing in what we ask, we gain a special
presence of and power with God.
The great day of Pentecost was realized in an atmosphere of unity
in prayer. “When they had entered the city, they went up to the
upper room where they were staying; that is, Peter and John and
James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and
Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon the Zealot, and
Judas the son of James. 14 These all with one mind were
continually devoting themselves to prayer, along with the women,
and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers. Acts
1:13,14
Unity is established by the Spirit, “For by one Spirit we were all
baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or
free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.” 1 Cor 12:13 If
we are being led by the Spirit, we will be led to unity whenever that
is possible.
“Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a
manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, 2
with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance
for one another in love, 3 being diligent to preserve the unity of the
Spirit in the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit, just
as also you were called in one hope of your calling. ” Eph 4:1-4
Richard Lovelace speaks of visiting a famous harpist’s storeroom,
where he kept harps of various sizes. When he plucked the largest
harp, every harp in the storeroom resounded with the same note.
When the Spirit plucks the heart of one believer in the church, then
every other believer should harmonize with what the Spirit is doing.
++++++++++++++++++++
The School of Prayer Part 3: Importunity
The request “Lord teach us to pray,” in Luk 11:1 is itself a prayer.
Our Lord immediately answered that prayer in the following verses.
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He gives three lessons on “Praying”: 1. An outline for the contents
of prayer in verses 2-4, 2. A lesson by comparison showing the
need for persistence in verses 5-10, and 3. A lesson by contrast
showing that the Father will give us the one thing needed in verses
11-13.
Let us look at the second lesson in our Lord’s teaching on praying,
The need for persistence. “And he said unto them, Which of you
shall have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say to
him, Friend, lend me three loaves; for a friend of mine is come to
me from a journey, and I have nothing to set before him; and he
from within shall answer and say, Trouble me not: the door is now
shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give
thee. I say unto you, Though he will not rise and give him because
he is his friend, yet because of his importunity he will arise and give
him as many as he needeth. And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall
be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened
unto you. For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh
findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.”
There are three friends in this story: the needing friend, the
interceding friend, and the supplying friend. The lesson is about the
intercessory prayer, but it is about something more: it is about
persistence in intercessory prayer. To many this sounds
inappropriate and even irreverent, but it can not be that because
the Lord Jesus is doing the teaching.
Christ Jesus encourages us to be fervent and persistent in our
prayer for others. We must come for the needs of those that God
has brought into our lives, as a man does to his neighbor or friend.
We must come for bread; for that which is needful and we all have
many people in our lives that have much need. If God does not
answer our prayers speedily, He will in due time, if we continue to
pray. Heb 4:16 “Let us therefore draw near with boldness unto the
throne of grace, that we may receive mercy, and may find grace to
help us in time of need.” The word for “boldly” here means “free
speakingly;” that is for any and all needs. God gives us needs for
us to pray about and He promises that He will meet that need or
give us mercy and grace to bear it, either way the need is removed.
The implication, here, and in Lk 8:1-8, is that God is reluctant to
answer prayer. But-- “The lesson is that lukewarmness in prayer,
as in everything else, is nauseating to God and comes away empty220
handed. On the other hand, shameless persistence, the
importunity that will not be denied, returns with the answer in its
hands...There may be other reasons why the divine response
tarries and importunity is needed...
1. We may be asking without caring greatly about the issue. If we
are not in earnest, why should God bestir Himself? We shall find
Him when we seek with all our hearts.
2. We may be asking for selfish reasons, and the discipline of
delay is necessary to purge us of this. Selfish motivation is selfdefeating in prayer.
3. We may unconsciously be unwilling to pay the price involved in
the answering of our prayers, and our Father desires us to face up
to this fact.
4. We may be misinterpreting what God is doing in our lives in
answer to our prayers....
5. ...apparent delay or denial of an answer...secures our humble
dependence on God. If He bestowed our desires as gifts of nature
and did not want our solicitations, we would tend to become
independent of Him.”
Prayer Power Unlimited, J. Oswald Sanders, p 84,86
Every unanswered prayer is a clarion call to search the heart to see
what is wrong there; for the promise is unmistakably clear: "If ye
shall ask anything in My name, that will I do" John 14:14
Adoniram Judson said, “God loves importunate prayer so much that
He will not give us much blessing without it. And the reason He
loves such prayer is that He loves us, and knows that it is a
necessary preparation for our receiving the richest blessing He is
waiting and longing to bestow.”
Our Lord concludes this lesson with triple emphasis: “Ask--Seek-Knock” and He re-emphasizes it again by saying, “For every one
that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that
knocketh it shall be opened.” This teaching is from Jesus the Son
of God; it has to be true.
Which “friend” are you “the needing friend,” or “the interceding
friend?” It is God’s will that we grow spiritually and become the
intercessor that can be good stewards in the business of the
kingdom.
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“God delays in answering our prayers because men would pluck
their mercies green; God would have them ripe.”
Unanswered yet? Nay, do not say unanswered,
Perhaps your part is not yet wholly done,
The work began when first your prayer was uttered,
And God will finish what He has begun.
Keep incense burning at the shrine of prayer,
And glory shall descend sometime, somewhere.
Unanswered yet? Faith cannot be unanswered;
Here feet are firmly planted on the Rock;
Amid the wildest storms she stands undaunted,
Nor quails before the loudest thunder shock.
She knows Omnipotence has heard her prayer,
And cries, “It shall be done sometime, somewhere.”
Ophelia Guyon Browning
++++++++++++++++++++
The School of Prayer Part 4: A Package Deal
The request “Lord teach us to pray,” in Lk 11:1 is itself a prayer.
Our Lord immediately answered that prayer in the following verses.
He gives three lessons on “Praying”: 1. An outline for the contents
of prayer in verses 2-4, 2. The need for persistence, in verses 510, and 3. Encouragement that the Father will give us the one
thing needed in verses 11-13.
Let us look at the third lesson in our Lord’s teaching on praying,
The praying for the Holy Spirit. “And of which of you that is a father
shall his son ask a loaf, and he give him a stone? or a fish, and he
for a fish give him a serpent? Or if he shall ask an egg, will he give
him a scorpion? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts
unto your children, how much more shall your heavenly Father give
the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?”
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Sometimes a father is asked for basic and necessary things that he
does not have to give. A human father is limited and many times
unable to do what he wants. Never is it such with God. God gives
more than we ask. More than we can imagine. “Now unto him that
is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think,
according to the power that worketh in us.” Eph 3:20
God’s children are to ask for the Holy Spirit; they are to receive Him
and God is sure to give Him when we ask persistently. Nothing
could be more obvious from our text.
Our relationship with the other members of the Trinity is not as
personal as it is with the “Holy Spirit.” In comparing our text with
Ma 7:11 we must conclude that the Holy Spirit is equivalent to all
“good things.” The sum total of all of our needs is the presence of
God liberated in our lives. The best prayer is the most important
prayer and the one of which Jesus says “how much more shall your
Heavenly Father give you.” Only here Jesus adds the Holy Spirit
(pneuma hagion) as the great gift (the summum bonum) that the
Father is ready to bestow.
Jesus tells us in Jn 14:16,17, 26 “And I will pray the Father, and he
shall give you another Comforter, that he may be with you for ever,
even the Spirit of truth: whom the world cannot receive; for it
beholdeth him not, neither knoweth him: ye know him; for he
abideth with you, and shall be in you... But the Comforter, even the
Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach
you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said unto
you.” The word “comforter” is a translation of paracletos also
translated Advocate or Helper. It means properly “one who is
summoned to the side of another” to help him in a court of justice
by defending him, Anyone who is summoned to plead a cause.
”Advocate” is the proper rendering of the word in every case where
it occurs. It is worthy of notice that although Paul nowhere uses the
word paracletos, but he presents the idea when he speaks of the
“intercession” both of Christ and the Spirit Ro 8:27,34.
If any of us are living a meager Christian life of coolness,
prayerlessness and uselessness, it is because we do not have the
Spirit. We do not have the Spirit because we do not seek him
importunately and with a deep sense of our need of him.
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Having the Holy Spirit is the real answer to the question “How to
Pray?” The ultimate object for and answer to prayer is the Holy
Spirit who is the author and sustainer of prayer. The Holy Spirit is
the initial cause of faith and salvation and He is the continuous
cause of prayerfulness and fruitfulness.
We might think of the Holy Spirit here as a “Package.” When we
buy a car, we don’t buy just a motor and gears and wheels. We
buy a package which includes all the things that make up a car,
even some things like a radio, air conditioner, even a service
warranty to make sure the car continues to function as intended.
When we buy a computer we usually get many more things along
with it to support it and make it practical, like tech support, web
access, and a printer. When we get the Holy Spirit, He comes with
all that is necessary for our lives to be fully functional and glorifying
to Jesus Christ. One of the primary parts of this “Holy Spirit”
package are “gifts.” The Holy Spirit gives gifts to believers to
indicate how they are to function in the Body of Christ.
So when we pray for and receive the Holy Spirit, we have done all
that is necessary to realize the will of God, advance the Kingdom of
God, and Glorify the Son of God. To ask for the Spirit is to pray “in
Jesus Name.” He told us to do it and when we pray for the Holy
Spirit we are acting on His authority.
Jesus taught his disciples that the highest exercise of prayer was in
obtaining God’s divinest bestowment, the gift of the Holy Spirit. Lk
11:13 William Patton
But it is the Holy Spirit of God Who is the prayer’s great Helper.
The Kneeling Christian
All true prayer is exercised in the sphere of the Holy Spirit,
motivated and empowered by Him. Eph 6:18
Breath on Me
Breathe on me, breathe on me, Holy Spirit, breathe on me
Take Thou my heart, cleanse every part, Holy Spirit, breathe on
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me.
Holy Spirit, breathe on me, Until, my heart is clean;
Let Sunshine fill its in most part, With not a cloud between.
Holy Spirit, breathe on me, My stubborn will subdue;
Teach me in words of living flame, What Christ would have me do.
Holy Spirit, breath on me, Fill me with power divine;
Kindle a flame of love and zeal, Within this heart of mine.
Holy Spirit breath on me, Till I am all Thine own,
Until my will is lost in Thine, To live for Thee alone.
Edwin Hatch 1835-1889
++++++++++++++++++++
Unpossessed Possessions
Can any of us say that the blessings that we have from the Lord are
all that God has for us, or that God can not or will not to do greater
things for us? Paul said in 1 Cor 2:9 “But as it is written, Eye hath
not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man,
the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.” Also in
3:21 “All things are yours, for you are Christ’s.” These inspired
statements are clear, but confusing when we realize how spiritually
impoverished we are. They are ours, but so many of us do not
possess our possessions.
Unrealized Wealth is illustrated in The Kneeling Christian Ch 8
“The owners of Mount Morgan, in Queensland, toiled arduously for
years on its barren slopes, eking out a miserable existence, never
knowing that under their feet was one of the richest sources of gold
the world has ever known. There was wealth, vast, undreamt of, yet
unimagined and unrealized. It was ‘theirs,’ yet ‘not theirs.’ The
Word of God is telling the Christian of the riches we have in Christ
Jesus, but we do not seem to know how to possess them.” Jesus
said Jn 14:12-14 “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on
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me, the works that I do shall he shall do also; and greater works
than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. And
whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father
may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I
will do it.” This text reveals both the potential and the problem.
The potential is that we can do greater works that our Lord Jesus
did. Hard to believe it, but He said it and it is true. With the
statement comes the question, “Why am I not doing these works?”
The solution to the problem is in the text, v 14 “If ye shall ask any
thing in my name, I will do it.” Here is the solution, “asking in Jesus
name.” If we don’t know how to “ask in Jesus Name” then we have
our first prayer objective. We must begin to beg God to show us
what it is to “ask in Jesus Name.”
God told Jeremiah “Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew
thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.” (33:3) God
has blessings for us that we don’t know about, that our eye has not
seen, our ear not heard, nor our heart desired. The way to know,
see, hear, and desire is to ask. Ask for desire, vision, courage, and
the ability to ask.
There are two men in the O.T. that set us a good example. Joshua
14:6-14 gives us the story of Caleb. Caleb was forty years old
when he and the other spies went out to spy out the land for Israel
to possess. Because the other spies did not believe that God was
able to do what He said, the nation of Israel had to wander in the
wilderness. Forty five years later, after the wilderness wandering
and the initial battles for the land had been fought, Caleb asks
“Now therefore give me this mountain, whereof the LORD spake in
that day; for thou heardest in that day how the Anakims were there,
and that the cities were great and fenced: if so be the LORD will be
with me, then I shall be able to drive them out, as the LORD said.”
This is a man that “wholly followed the Lord,” with patient
persistence in asking for what God had for Him. His possession did
not go unpossessed.
The other man is Jabez. We only hear of him once in Scripture 1
Chr 4:10 “And Jabez called on the God of Israel, saying, Oh that
thou wouldest bless me indeed, and enlarge my coast, and that
thine hand might be with me, and that thou wouldest keep me from
evil, that it may not grieve me! And God granted him that which he
requested.” Jabez wanted more land, more responsibility, more
opportunity but not just of the temporal type but spiritual blessings,
covenant blessings, the sure mercies of David, which are the real
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as opposed to the unreal physical things. He was willing to deal
with any problems, like the Canaanites, that might be there. He
was looking at the increase of his boarders as a spiritual
enlargement. A deliverance from spiritual enemies, with the grace
and spiritual ability to use the blessings for God’s glory. He asked
God for more and “God granted him that which he requested.”
Ps 119:32 “I will run the way of thy commandments, when thou
shalt enlarge my heart.”
1 John 5:14,15 “And this is the confidence that we have in him,
that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he hears us. And if
we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we
have the petitions that we desired of him.”
God can not grant us our request if we don’t “request.”
God help us to possess all our possessions.
Lord, Listen to Your Children
Lord, listen to your children praying,
Lord, send your Spirit in this place;
Lord, listen to your children praying,
Send us love, send us pow’r, send us grace.
Some-thing’s gonna happen like the world has never known,
When the people of the Lord get down to pray;
A door's gon-na swing open, and the walls come a tumbling down,
When the people of the Lord get down to pray.
He’s gon-na take over, He’s gon-na take control,
When the people of the Lord get down to pray;
He’s gon-na move the mountain He’s gon-na make the waters roll,
When the people of the Lord get down to pray.
You’re gon-na know it when the Lord stretches out His hand,
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When the people of the Lord get down to pray;
There’s gon’na be a brand new song of vic-try in this land,
When the people of the Lord get down to pray.
++++++++++++++++++++
Violent Praying
“From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven
has suffered violence, and forceful people lay hold of it.” Mat
11:12
Prayer is a duty which keeps the business of religion flowing.
When we either join in prayer with others or pray alone, we must
use holy violence; not eloquence but violence in prayer makes it
effective. Theodorus, speaking of Luther, once said, “I overheard
him in prayer, but, good God, with what life and spirit did he pray! It
was with so much reverence as if he were speaking to God, yet
with so much confidence, as if he had been speaking to his friend.”
There must be a stirring up of the heart, first, to prayer, and
secondly, in prayer. First, a stirring up of the heart to prayer: “As
for you, if you prove faithful, and if you stretch out your hands
toward him,” Job 11:13. This preparing of our heart is accomplished
by holy thoughts and ejaculations. The musician first tunes his
instrument before he plays. Secondly, there must be a stirring up
of the heart in prayer. Prayer is a lifting up of the mind and soul to
God, which cannot be done rightly without offering violence to one’s
self. The names given to prayer imply violence. It is called
wrestling in Gen 32:24, and a pouring out of the soul in 1 Sam 1:15,
both of which imply vehemency. Affection is required as well as
invention. The apostle speaks of an effectual, fervent prayer, which
is a parallel phrase to offering violence. “The effectual fervent
prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” Ja 5:16
Far from offering violent prayer are they who give God a dead,
heartless prayer. God would not have the blind offered Mat 1:8; to
offer the blind is as offering the dead. Some are half asleep when
they pray and will a sleepy prayer ever awaken God? The prayers
that God likes best come seething hot from the heart.
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Far are they from offering violent prayer who give God distracted
prayer. While praying, they are thinking of their jobs and business.
How can one shoot straight who doesn’t keep his eye on the
target? Will a king tolerate his subject delivering a petition and
speaking to him while he is playing with a toy? When we send our
hearts on an errand to Heaven, how often do they loiter and play by
the way?
Prayer without fervency and violence is no prayer; it is speaking,
not praying. Lifeless prayer is no more prayer than the picture of a
man is a man. To say a prayer is not to pray; Aschanius taught his
parrot the Lord's Prayer. Ambrose said it well, “It is the life and
affection in a duty that baptizeth it, and gives it a name.” It is the
violence and wrestling of the affections that make it a prayer, else it
is no prayer.
The zeal and violence of the affections in prayer best suits God's
nature. He is a Spirit, Jn 4:24, and surely that prayer which is full of
life and spirit is the savory meat He loves, “you yourselves as living
stones are built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood and
to offer spiritual sacrifices that are acceptable to God through Jesus
Christ” 1 Pet 2:5. It is not the stretching of the lungs, but the
vehemency of the desire, that makes music in God's ears. 1 Tim
4:8
It is only violence and intenseness of spirit in prayer that has the
promise of mercy affixed to it, “Knock, and it shall be opened” Mat
7:7. Knocking is a violent motion. It is violence in prayer that
makes heaven's gates fly open and fetches in whatever mercies we
stand in need of.
When we pray with a sense of our wants, we become the more
violent in prayer. A beggar pinched with want will be earnest in
craving alms. Christian, review your wants; you want a humble,
spiritual frame of heart; you want the light of God's countenance;
the sense of want will quicken prayer. A man can never pray
fervently who does not pray feelingly. How earnest was Samson
for water when he was ready to die! “I die of thirst” Judg 15:18.
If we would be violent in prayer, let us beg for a violent wind. The
Spirit of God is resembled to “a violent wind” in Acts 2:1,2; “Now
when the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one
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place. Suddenly a sound like a violent wind blowing came from
heaven and filled the entire house where they were sitting.” We are
violent when this blessed wind fills our sails, when we are “But you,
dear friends, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith, by
praying in the Holy Spirit” Jude 20. “In the same way, the Spirit
helps us in our weakness, for we do not know how we should pray,
but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with inexpressible
groanings.” Rom 8:26
(Condensed and revised from Heaven Taken by Storm, by Thomas
Watson, Chapter 5 Offering Violence by Prayer)
Prayer does not consist in gifted expressions and a volubility of
speech; but in a brokenness of heart.
Prayer does not consist in the elegance of the phrase, but in the
strength of the affection.
John Mason (1646-1694)
I often say my prayers, but do I ever pray?
And do the wishes of my heart, go with the words I say?
I might as well kneel down, and worship gods of stone,
As offer to the living God, a prayer of words alone.
O watch and fight, and pray.
The battle ne’er give o’er.
Renew it boldly every day,
And help divine implore.
Ne’er think the victory won,
Nor lay thine armor down;
The work of faith will not be done,
Till thou obtain thy crown.
Fight on, my soul...
George Heath
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++++++++++++++++++++
What Prayer Is Part 1
John Bunyan
Prayer is a sincere, sensible, affectionate pouring out of the heart
or soul to God, through Christ, in the strength and assistance of the
Holy Spirit, for such things as God hath promised, or according to
the Word, for the good of the church, with submission, in faith, to
the will of God.
In this description are these seven things. First, It is a sincere;
Second, A sensible; Third, An affectionate, pouring out of the soul
to God, through Christ; Fourth, By the strength or assistance of
the Spirit; Fifth, For such things as God hath promised, or,
according to his word; Sixth, For the good of the church; Seventh,
With submission in faith to the will of God.
For the first of these, it is a Sincere pouring out of the soul to God.
Sincerity is such a grace as runs through all the graces of God in
us, and through all the actings of a Christian, and hath the sway in
them too, or else their actings are not any thing regarded of God,
and so of and in prayer, of which particularly David speaks, when
he mentions prayer. "I cried unto him," the Lord "with my mouth,
and he was extolled with my tongue. If I regard iniquity in my heart,
the Lord will not hear" my prayer (Psa 66:17,18). Part of the
exercise of prayer is sincerity, without which God looks not upon it
as prayer in a good sense (Psa 16:1-4). Then "ye shall seek me
and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart" (Jer
29:12-13). The want of this made the Lord reject their prayers in
Hosea 7:14, where he saith, "They have not cried unto me with
their heart," that is, in sincerity, "when they howled upon their
beds." But for a pretence, for a show in hypocrisy, to be seen of
men, and applauded for the same, they prayed. Sincerity was that
which Christ commended in Nathaniel, when he was under the fig
tree. "Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile." Probably
this good man was pouring out of his soul to God in prayer under
the fig tree, and that in a sincere and unfeigned spirit before the
Lord. The prayer that hath this in it as one of the principal
ingredients, is the prayer that God looks at. Thus, "The prayer of
the upright is his delight" (Prov 15:8).
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And why must sincerity be one of the essentials of prayer which is
accepted of God, but because sincerity carries the soul in all
simplicity to open its heart to God, and to tell him the case plainly,
without equivocation; to condemn itself plainly, without dissembling;
to cry to God heartily, without complimenting. "I have surely heard
Ephraim bemoaning himself thus; Thou has chastised me, and I
was chastised, as a bullock unaccustomed to the yoke" (Jer 31:18).
Sincerity is the same in a corner alone, as it is before the face of
the world. It knows not how to wear two vizards, one for an
appearance before men, and another for a short snatch in a corner;
but it must have God, and be with him in the duty of prayer. It is not
lip-labour that it doth regard, for it is the heart that God looks at,
and that which sincerity looks at, and that which prayer comes
from, if it be that prayer which is accompanied with sincerity.
++++++++++++++++++++
What Prayer Is Part 2
John Bunyan
Prayer is a sincere, sensible, affectionate pouring out of the heart
or soul to God, through Christ, in the strength and assistance of the
Holy Spirit, for such things as God hath promised, or according to
the Word, for the good of the church, with submission, in faith, to
the will of God.
It is a sincere and Sensible pouring out of the heart or soul. It is
not, as many take it to be, even a few babbling, prating,
complimentary expressions, but a sensible feeling there is in the
heart. Prayer hath in it a sensibleness of diverse things; sometimes
sense of sin, sometimes of mercy received, sometimes of the
readiness of God to give mercy, &c.
1. A sense of the want of mercy, by reason of the danger of sin.
The soul, I say, feels, and from feeling sighs, groans, and breaks at
the heart. For right prayer bubbleth out of the heart when it is
overpressed with grief and bitterness, as blood is forced out of the
flesh by reason of some heavy burden that lieth upon it (I Sam
1:10; Psa 69:3). David roars, cries, weeps, faints at heart, fails at
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the eyes, loseth his moisture, &c., (Psa 38:8-10). Hezekiah mourns
like a dove (Isa 38:14). Ephraim bemoans himself (Jer 31:18).
Peter weeps bitterly (Matt 26:75). Christ hath strong cryings and
tears (Heb 5:7). And all this from a sense of the justice of God, the
guilt of sin, the pains of hell and destruction. "The sorrows of death
compassed me, and the pains of hell gat hold upon me: I found
trouble and sorrow." Then cried I unto the Lord (Psa 116:3,4). And
in another place, "My sore ran in the night" (Psa 77:2). Again, "I am
bowed down greatly; I go mourning all the day long" (Psa 38:6). In
all these instances, and in hundreds more that might be named,
you may see that prayer carrieth in it a sensible feeling disposition,
and that first from a sense of sin.
2. Sometimes there is a sweet sense of mercy received;
encouraging, comforting, strengthening, enlivening, enlightening
mercy, &c. Thus David pours out his soul, to bless, and praise, and
admire the great God for his loving-kindness to such poor vile
wretches. "Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me
bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all
his benefits.6 Who forgiveth all thine iniquities, who healeth all thy
diseases; who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth
thee with loving-kindness and tender mercies; who satisfieth thy
mouth with good things, so that thy youth is renewed like the
eagle's" (Psa 103:1-5). And thus is the prayer of saints sometimes
turned into praise and thanksgiving, and yet are prayers still. This
is a mystery; God's people pray with their praises, as it is written,
"Be careful for nothing, but in every thing by prayer, and
supplication, with thanksgiving, let your request be made known
unto God" (Phil 4:6). A sensible thanksgiving, for mercies received,
is a mighty prayer in the sight of God; it prevails with him
unspeakably.
3. In prayer there is sometimes in the soul a sense of mercy to be
received. This again sets the soul all on a flame. "Thou, O lord of
hosts," saith David, "hast revealed to thy servant, saying I will build
thee an house; therefore hath thy servant found in his heart to pray
- unto thee" (II Sam 7:27). This provoked Jacob, David, Daniel,
with others even a sense of mercies to be received which caused
them, not by fits and starts, nor yet in a foolish frothy way, to babble
over a few words written in a paper; but mightily, fervently, and
continually, to groan out their conditions before the Lord, as being
sensible, sensible, I say, of their wants, their misery, and the
willingness of God to show mercy (Gen 32:10,11; Dan 9:3,4).
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A good sense of sin, and the wrath of God, with some
encouragement from God to come unto him, is a better Commonprayer-book than that which is taken out of the Papistical massbook, being the scraps and fragments of the devices of some
popes, some friars, and I wot not what.
++++++++++++++++++++
What Prayer Is Part 3
John Bunyan
Prayer is a sincere, sensible, affectionate pouring out of the heart
or soul to God, through Christ, in the strength and assistance of the
Holy Spirit, for such things as God hath promised, or according to
the Word, for the good of the church, with submission, in faith, to
the will of God.
Prayer is a sincere, sensible, and an Affectionate pouring out of the
soul to God. O! the heat, strength, life, vigour, and affection, that is
in right prayer! "As the hart panteth after the water-brooks, so
panteth my soul after thee, O God" (Psa 42:1). "I have longed after
thy precepts" (Psa 119:40). "I have longed for thy salvation" (ver
174). "My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth, for the courts of the
Lord; my heart and my flesh crieth out for the living God" (Psa
84:2). "My soul breaketh for the longing that it hath unto thy
judgments at all times" (Psa 119:20). Mark ye here, "My soul
longeth," it longeth, it longeth, &c. O what affection is here
discovered in prayer! The like you have in Daniel. "O Lord, hear; O
Lord, forgive; O Lord, hearken and do; defer not, for thine own
sake, O my God" (Dan 9:19). Every syllable carrieth a mighty
vehemency in it. This is called the fervent, or the working prayer,
by James. And so again, "And being in an agony, he prayed more
earnestly" (Luke 22:44). Or had his affections more and more
drawn out after God for his helping hand. O! How wide are the
most of men with their prayers from this prayer, that is, PRAYER in
God's account! Alas! The greatest part of men make no
conscience at all of the duty; and as for them that do, it is to be
feared that many of them are very great strangers to a sincere,
sensible, and affectionate pouring out their hearts or souls to God;
but even content themselves with a little lip-labour and bodily
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exercise, mumbling over a few imaginary prayers. When the
affections are indeed engaged in prayer, then, then the whole man
is engaged, and that in such sort, that the soul will spend itself to
nothing, as it were, rather than it will go without that good desired,
even communion and solace with Christ. And hence it is that the
saints have spent their strengths, and lost their lives, rather than go
without the blessing (Psa 69:3; 38:9,10; Gen 32:24,26).
All this is too, too evident by the ignorance, profaneness, and spirit
of envy, that reign in the hearts of those men that are so hot for the
forms, and not the power of praying. Scarce one of forty among
them know what it is to be born again, to have communion with the
Father through the Son; to feel the power of grace sanctifying their
hearts: but for all their prayers, they still live cursed, drunken,
whorish, and abominable lives, full of malice, envy, deceit,
persecuting of the dear children of God. O what a dreadful afterclap is coming upon them! which all their hypocritical assembling
themselves together, with all their prayers, shall never be able to
help them against, or shelter them from.
Again, It is a pouring out of the heart or soul. There is in prayer an
unbosoming of a man's self, an opening of the heart to God, an
affectionate pouring out of the soul in requests, sighs, and groans.
"All my desire is before thee," saith David, "and my groaning is not
hid from thee" (Psa 38:9). And again, "My soul thirsteth for God, for
the living God. When shall I come and appear before God? When
I remember these things, I pour out my soul in me" (Psa 42:2,4).
Mark, "I pour out my soul." It is an expression signifying, that in
prayer there goeth the very life and whole strength to God. As in
another place, "Trust in him at all times; ye people, - pour out your
heart before him" (Psa 62:8). This is the prayer to which the
promise is made, for the delivering of a poor creature out of
captivity and thralldom. "If from thence thou shalt seek the Lord thy
God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with
all thy soul" (Deut 4:29).
Again, It is a pouring out of the heart or soul TO GOD. This
showeth also the excellency of the spirit of prayer. It is the great
God to which it retires. "When shall I come and appear before
God?" And it argueth, that the soul that thus prayeth indeed, sees
an emptiness in all things under heaven; that in God alone there is
rest and satisfaction for the soul. "Now she that is a widow indeed,
and desolate, trusteth in God" (I Tim 5:5). So saith David, "In thee,
O Lord, do I put my trust; let me never be put to confusion. Deliver
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me in thy righteousness, and cause me to escape; incline thine ear
to me, and save me. Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I
may continually resort: - for thou art my rock and my fortress;
deliver me, O my God, - out of the hand of the unrighteous and
cruel man. For thou art my hope, O Lord God, thou art my trust
from my youth" (Psa 71:1-5). Many in a wording way speak of God;
but right prayer makes God his hope, stay, and all. Right prayer
sees nothing substantial, and worth the looking after, but God. And
that, as I said before, it doth in a sincere, sensible, and affectionate
way.
Again, It is a sincere, sensible, affectionate pouring out of the heart
or soul to God, THROUGH CHRIST. This through Christ must
needs be added, or else it is to be questioned, whether it be prayer,
though in appearance it be never so eminent or eloquent.
Christ is the way through whom the soul hath admittance to God,
and without whom it is impossible that so much as one desire
should come into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth (John 14:6). "If
ye shall ask anything in my name"; "whatsoever ye shall ask the
Father in my name, I will do it" (John 14:13,14). This was Daniel's
way in praying for the people of God; he did it in the name of Christ.
"Now therefore, O our God, hear the prayer of thy servant, and his
supplications, and cause thy face to shine upon thy sanctuary that
is desolate, for the Lord's sake" (Dan 9:17). And so David, "For thy
name's sake," that is, for thy Christ's sake, "pardon mine iniquity,
for it is great" (Psa 25:11). But now, it is not every one that maketh
mention of Christ's name in prayer, that doth indeed, and in truth,
effectually pray to God in the name of Christ, or through him. This
coming to God through Christ is the hardest part that is found in
prayer. A man may more easily be sensible of his works, ay, and
sincerely too desire mercy, and yet not be able to come to God by
Christ. That man that comes to God by Christ, he must first have
the knowledge of him; "for he that cometh to God, must believe that
he is" (Heb 11:6). And so he that comes to God through Christ,
must be enabled to know Christ. Lord, saith Moses, "show me now
thy way, that I may know thee" (Ex 33:13).
This Christ, none but the Father can reveal (Matt 11:27). And to
come through Christ, is for the soul to be enabled of God to shroud
itself under the shadow of the Lord Jesus, as a man shroudeth
himself under a thing for safeguard (Matt 16:16). Hence it is that
David so often terms Christ his shield, buckler, tower, fortress, rock
of defence, &c., (Psa 18:2; 27:1; 28:1). Not only because by him he
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overcame his enemies, but because through him he found favour
with God the Father. And so he saith to Abraham, "Fear not, I am
thy shield," &c., (Gen 15:1). The man then that comes to God
through Christ, must have faith, by which he puts on Christ, and in
him appears before God. Now he that hath faith is born of God,
born again, and so becomes one of the sons of God; by virtue of
which he is joined to Christ, and made a member of him (John
3:5,7; 1:12). And therefore, secondly he, as a member of Christ,
comes to God; I say, as a member of him, so that God looks on that
man as a part of Christ, part of his body, flesh, and bones, united to
him by election, conversion, illumination, the Spirit being conveyed
into the heart of that poor man by God (Eph 5:30). So that now he
comes to God in Christ's merits, in his blood, righteousness, victory,
intercession, and so stands before him, being "accepted in his
Beloved" (Eph 1:6). And because this poor creature is thus a
member of the Lord Jesus, and under this consideration hath
admittance to come to God; therefore, by virtue of this union also, is
the Holy Spirit conveyed into him, whereby he is able to pour out
himself, to wit, his soul, before God, with his audience. And this
leads me to the next, or fourth particular.
++++++++++++++++++++
What Prayer Is Part 4
John Bunyan
Prayer is a sincere, sensible, affectionate pouring out of the heart
or soul to God, through Christ, in the strength and assistance of the
Holy Spirit, for such things as God hath promised, or according to
the Word, for the good of the church, with submission, in faith, to
the will of God.
Prayer is a sincere, sensible, affectionate, pouring out OT the heart
or soul to God through Christ, by the strength or Assistance of the
Spirit. For these things do so depend one upon another, that it is
impossible that it should be prayer, without there be a joint
concurrence of them; for though it be never so famous, yet without
these things, it is only such prayer as is rejected of God. For
without a sincere, sensible, affectionate pouring out of the heart to
God, it is but lip-labour; and if it be not through Christ, it falleth far
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short of ever sounding well in the ears of God. So also, if it be not
in the strength and assistance of the Spirit, it is but like the sons of
Aaron, offering with strange fire (Lev 10:1,2). But I shall speak
more to this under the second head; and therefore in the meantime,
that which is not petitioned through the teaching and assistance of
the Spirit, it is not possible that it should be "according to the will of
God (Rom 8:26,27).
Rom 8: 26 And in like manner the Spirit also helpeth our infirmity:
for we know not how to pray as we ought; but the Spirit himself
maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered;
27 and he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of
the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according
to the will of God.
Joh 6:63 It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing:
the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.
1 Corth 2:9 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard,
neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God
hath prepared for them that love him. 10 But God hath revealed
them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea,
the deep things of God. 11 For what man knoweth the things of a
man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of
God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.
++++++++++++++++++++
What Prayer Is Part 5
John Bunyan
What prayer is. Prayer is a sincere, sensible, affectionate pouring
out of the heart or soul to God, through Christ, in the strength and
assistance of the Holy Spirit, for such things as God hath promised,
or according to the Word, for the good of the church, with
submission, in faith, to the will of God.
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Prayer is a sincere, sensible, affectionate pouring out of the heart,
or soul, to God, through Christ, in the strength and assistance of
the Spirit, for Such Things as God Hath Promised, &c., (Matt 6:68). Prayer it is, when it is within the compass of God's Word; and it
is blasphemy, or at best vain babbling, when the petition is beside
the book. David therefore still in his prayer kept his eye on the
Word of God. "My soul," saith he, "cleaveth to the dust; quicken me
according to thy word." And again, "My soul melteth for heaviness,
strengthen thou me according unto thy word" (Psa 119:25-28; see
also 41, 42, 58, 65, 74, 81, 82, 107, 147, 154, 169, 170). And,
"remember thy word unto thy servant, upon which thou hast caused
me to hope" (ver 49). And indeed the Holy Ghost doth not
immediately quicken and stir up the heart of the Christian without,
but by, with, and through the Word, by bringing that to the heart,
and by opening of that, whereby the man is provoked to go to the
Lord, and to tell him how it is with him, and also to argue, and
supplicate, according to the Word; thus it was with Daniel, that
mighty prophet of the Lord. He understanding by books that the
captivity of the children of Israel was hard at an end; then,
according unto that word, he maketh his prayer to God. "I Daniel,"
saith he, "understood by books," viz., the writings of Jeremiah, "the
number of the years whereof the word of the Lord came to
Jeremiah, - that he would accomplish seventy years in the
desolations of Jerusalem. And I set my face to the Lord God, to
seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and
ashes" (Dan 9:2,3). So that I say, as the Spirit is the helper and the
governor of the soul, when it prayeth according to the will of God;
so it guideth by and according to, the Word of God and his promise.
Hence it is that our Lord Jesus Christ himself did make a stop,
although his life lay at stake for it. I could now pray to my Father,
and he should give me more than twelve legions of angels; but how
then must the scripture be fulfilled that thus it must be? (Matt
26:53,54). As who should say, Were there but a word for it in the
scripture, I should soon be out of the hands of mine enemies, I
should be helped by angels; but the scripture will not warrant this
kind of praying, for that saith otherwise. It is a praying then
according to the Word and promise. The Spirit by the Word must
direct, as well in the manner, as in the matter of prayer. "I will pray
with the Spirit, and I will pray with the understanding also" (I Cor
14:15). But there is no understanding without the Word. For if they
reject the word of the Lord, "what wisdom is in them?" (Jer 8:9).
++++++++++++++++++++
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What Prayer Is Part 6
John Bunyan
Prayer is a sincere, sensible, affectionate pouring out of the heart
or soul to God, through Christ, in the strength and assistance of the
Holy Spirit, for such things as God hath promised, or according to
the Word, for the good of the church, with submission, in faith, to
the will of God.
For the Good of the Church. This clause reacheth in whatsoever
tendeth either to the honour of God, Christ's advancement, or his
people's benefit. For God, and Christ, and his people are so linked
together that if the good of the one be prayed for, to wit, the church,
the glory of God, and advancement of Christ, must needs be
included. For as Christ is in the Father, so the saints are in Christ;
and he that toucheth the saints, toucheth the apple of God's eye;
and therefore pray for the peace of Jerusalem, and you pray for all
that is required of you. For Jerusalem will never be in perfect
peace until she be in heaven; and there is nothing that Christ doth
more desire than to have her there. That also is the place that God
through Christ hath given to her. He then that prayeth for the
peace and good of Zion, or the church, doth ask that in prayer
which Christ hath purchased with his blood; and also that which the
Father hath given to him as the price thereof. Now he that prayeth
for this, must pray for abundance of grace for the church, for help
against all its temptations; that God would let nothing be too hard
for it; and that all things might work together for its good, that God
would keep them blameless and harmless, the sons of God, to his
glory, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation. And this is the
substance of Christ's own prayer in John 17. And all Paul's prayers
did run that way, as one of his prayers doth eminently show. "And
this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in
knowledge, and in all judgment; that ye may approve things that are
excellent; that ye may be sincere, and without offence, till the day of
Christ. Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by
Jesus Christ unto the glory and praise of God" (Phil 1:9-11). But a
short prayer, you see, and yet full of good desires for the church,
from the beginning to the end; that it may stand and go on, and that
in the most excellent frame of spirit, even without blame, sincere,
and without offence, until the day of Christ, let its temptations or
persecutions be what they will (Eph 1:16-21; 3:14-19; Col 1:9-13).
++++++++++++++++++++
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What Prayer Is Part 7
John Bunyan
Prayer is a sincere, sensible, affectionate pouring out of the heart
or soul to God, through Christ, in the strength and assistance of the
Holy Spirit, for such things as God hath promised, or according to
the Word, for the good of the church, with submission, in faith, to
the will of God.
And because, as I said, prayer doth Submit to the Will of God, and
say, Thy will be done, as Christ hath taught us (Matt 6:10);
therefore the people of the Lord in humility are to lay themselves
and their prayers, and all that they have, at the foot of their God, to
be disposed of by him as he in his heavenly wisdom seeth best.
Yet not doubting but God will answer the desire of his people that
way that shall be most for their advantage and his glory. When the
saints therefore do pray with submission to the will of God, it doth
not argue that they are to doubt or question God's love and
kindness to them. But because they at all times are not so wise,
but that sometimes Satan may get that advantage of them, as to
tempt them to pray for that which, if they had it, would neither prove
to God's glory nor his people's good. "Yet this is the confidence
that we have in him, that if we ask anything according to his will, he
heareth us; and if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we
know that we have the petitions that we desired of him," that is, we
asking in the Spirit of grace and supplication (I John 5:14,15). For,
as I said before, that petition that is not put up in and through the
Spirit, it is not to be answered, because it is beside the will of God.
For the Spirit only knoweth that, and so consequently knoweth how
to pray according to that will of God. "For what man knoweth the
things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the
things of God knoweth no man but the Spirit of God" (I Cor 2:11).
But more of this hereafter. Thus you see, first, what prayer is.
++++++++++++++++++++
Why Importunity Is Needed
Luke 11:5-9 “And he said unto them, Which of you shall have a
friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say to him, Friend,
lend me three loaves; for a friend of mine is come to me from a
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journey, and I have nothing to set before him; and he from within
shall answer and say, Trouble me not: the door is now shut, and my
children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give thee? I say unto
you, Though he will not rise and give him because he is his friend,
yet because of his importunity he will arise and give him as many
as he needeth. And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you;
seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.”
Our Lord says the man got what he wanted “Because of his
importunity” To importune means “To press with repeated
requests.” Importunity is making repeated request, i.e. asking,
seeking, knocking. Why does God want us to be ‘Importunate’ ? If
it is His will why doesn’t He give the answer straight away.
Importunity is necessary because of:
1. Insufficient Desire
We may be asking without really caring about what we are asking.
Jesus taught us to “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy
heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.” Mt 22:37 To be
any less is not fitting for the God of Omnipotent power and Infinite
Glory. We shall find Him when we seek with all our hearts “And ye
shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all
your heart.” Jer 29:13 “It is reasonable that God should withhold a
blessing, until we feel our need of it sufficiently.”
2. Inappropriate Motives
We may be asking for selfish reasons, and the discipline of delay is
necessary to purge us. “Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask
amiss, that ye may spend it in your pleasures.” Jas 4:3 Our motive
in all things should be solely to “do all to the glory of God.” 1 Co
10:31 If we knew the truth about ourselves it might shock us to
know that we are really worshiping ourselves in much of our
praying.
3. Ignorance of what God is doing
We may be misinterpreting what God is doing in our lives in answer
to our prayers. This was true of John Newton, the converted slave
trader. He give his testimony in verse:
I asked the Lord, that I might grow
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In faith, and love, and every grace,
Might more of His salvation know,
And seek more earnestly His face.
It was He who taught me thus to pray,
And He, I trust has answered prayer;
But it has been in such a way,
As almost drove me to despair.
I hoped that in some favored hour,
At once He'd answer my request:
And by His love's constraining power,
Subdue my sins, and give me rest.
Instead of this, He made me feel
The hidden evils of my heart;
And let the angry powers of hell
Assault my soul in every part.
Yes more, with His own hand He seemed
Intent to aggravate my woe;
Crossed all the fair designs I schemed,
Blasted my gourds, and laid me low.
Lord, why is this, I trembling cried,
Will You pursue Your worm to death?
"This in this way," the Lord replied,
"I answer prayer for grace and faith."
"These inward trials I employ,
From self and pride to set you free;
And break your schemes of earthly joy,
That you may seek your all in Me."
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5. Incomplete Dependence on God
As we react to God’s delays with importunate praying we realize
how completely we are dependent on Him. “It secures our humble
dependence on God.” D.M. McIntyre “Except Jehovah build the
house, They labor in vain that build it: Except Jehovah keep the
city, The watchman waketh but in vain.” Ps 127:1 “Not until we are
shut up to a difficulty which we can in no way touch, may we rely on
prayer alone.”
6. Immaturity in our Relationship with God
Intimacy with God, in long and serious interaction with Him will
make us spiritually mature. We must learn to abide in Him whether
we have quick answers or long delays. “The promises to hear
prayer are not made to the mere form, but to the appropriate spirit.”
“Importunate perseverance is a pre-requisite to success in prayer,
because it has an intimate connection with the preparation of a right
spiritual condition in us.” The round-the-clock prayer meeting
begun in Count Zinzendorf’s community in 1727 continued for 100
years! The community was called Herrnhut, ‘the Lord’s Watch” (Isa
62:6-7).” (Teach us To Pray, Carson) Imagine that, a prayer
meeting that lasts 876,000 hours. That kind of persistence and
importunity did and still can have world wide impact.
Pray, though the gifts you ask for
May never comfort your fears,
May never repay your pleading:
Yet pray, and with hopeful tears,
An answer --not that you sought for,
But diviner--will come one day:
Yet strive and wait and pray.
Adelaide A. Procter
(Quotes from: Prayer and its Remarkable Answers, William Patton
p 72)
It can easily be shown that all want of success, and all failure in the
spiritual life and in Christian work, is due to defective or insufficient
prayer. The Kneeling Christian
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++++++++++++++++++++
The Principle Business Of The Church Is Prayer
“And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all those who were
buying and selling in the temple, and overturned the tables of the
money changers and the seats of those who were selling doves.
And he said to them, ‘it is written, My house shall be called a house
of prayer; but you are making it a robbers’ den’” Mat 21:12,13
The following was written in 1936 and is still true for us today.
A careful study of the Church in the Acts will reveal how very much
time the early church spent in prayer. It seems that when any
problem, difficulty, or persecution arose, the Church resorted to
prayer-not argument, controversy or reasoning, not even preaching,
important as was and is, but to prayer.
Perhaps it is not amiss to say that, comparatively, too much
emphasis is placed on preaching and too little on prayer in the
modern church. Oft times we find the preacher’s general prayer
from the pulpit to be of the nature of a short sermon. Jesus called
the temple “a house of prayer” we have made it a house of
preaching. Jesus never taught his disciples to preach--so far as the
record goes--but He did teach them to pray.
It has been said that the Sunday morning service of a church
advertises the popularity of that church-you are able to tell the
standing of the church by the class of people attending the morning
service, and the make of automobiles parked outside the church.
The evening is said to advertise the popularity of the preacher-that
is where he gets his chance to speak on striking, popular,
sensational themes or to review the latest popular novel thus
affording him an opportunity to display his native powers and ability.
The midweek meeting is said to advertise the popularity of the Lord,
and, alas what a small number of people attend that meeting as
compared with the Sunday morning and evening meetings! The
mid-week meeting is, or rather should be, a meeting for prayer, but,
actually, prayer has a very subordinate place in it. It would seem as
if, God’s people can be gathered together for anything--but prayer.
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Let us not forget, then, that prayer is the business of the Church, a
business which cannot be neglected without serious spiritual loss.
Suppose the business of any large city should suspend operations
for one week, no telephone communication, no railroads running,
no street cars operating, no ledger or desk opened, no bank
handing out money, no office open to transact business, can you
imagine what would happen? You say that such a thing is
absolutely out of the question nowadays; that it is unthinkable and
you begin to enumerate the awful consequences following such a
supposed suspension of business. You say that “babies would
perish for want of milk; adults die for want of food; people freeze for
want adults die for want of food; people freeze for want of fuel;
well,” you say, “it is just impossible, that’s all.” But have you ever
thought on what the result would be if the church suspends her
business of praying? “If a man see his brother sin . . . he shall
pray, and God shall give life for those that sin...” Yes, but suppose
we do not pray! Then that soul is not forgiven, shall we say Oh, the
fearful spiritual disaster following in the wake of the neglect of
prayer by the Church! Churchly organizations and activities without
prayer are as useless as a telephone or radio without electricity.
The more time we spend in prayer the more we show our
dependence upon God; the less time we devote to pleading with
God the more conscious we are of our own ability. Less of prayer,
more of self; more of prayer, more of God.
A praying church is an invincible church. The gates of Hades shall
ne’er prevail against it, and the powers of evil shall tremble in its
presence.
Any man or church that is to busy to pray is busier than God ever
expected any church or human being to be. Why Pray? by William
Evans, 1937 p 31,32
“Thus Solomon finished the house of the LORD and the king’s
palace, and successfully completed all that he had planned on
doing in the house of the LORD and in his palace. Then the LORD
appeared to Solomon at night and said to him, “I have heard your
prayer and have chosen this place for Myself as a house of
sacrifice. “If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I
command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence
among My people, and My people who are called by My name
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humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their
wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and
will heal their land. 2 Chr 7: 11-14
History confirms the truth that wherever evangelical and vital
religion flourish, there lives the earnest gatherings for social prayer.
The Prayer Meeting and Its History, J. B. Johnston
“If we pray among a select society of Christians, we draw near to
God with holy boldness, something like what we use in our duties of
secret worship. We have reason to take more freedom among
fellow saints and whose hearts have felt many of the same
workings as our own.” A Guide to Prayer, Isaac Watts, p 58
++++++++++++++++++++
True Grounds for Prayer
“The pagan idea was that there is something in a prayer--a
mysterious power or a hidden value--which if brought to bear upon
God may attract Him, propitiate Him, or in some way cause Him to
change His mind, and come to the help of the supplicant.…the
popular notion to-day is that the thing which attracts God is not the
prayer itself, but the faith that is behind it and that runs through it….
the ground upon which it rests is always something outside of God.
The pagan prays because he has faith it’s the power or virtue of his
prayers and the paganized Christian (or, more accurately, the
Christianized pagan) prays because he has faith in the power of
faith.” What Did Jesus Really Teach About Prayer? Edward Pell, p
83 Pell wrote those words in 1921 but we still see the errors today.
The two errors are:
1. Trusting in the mechanics of prayer. Jesus rebuked this, “when
you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles
do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words.”
Mat 6: 7
When the Lord answered the disciples’ request to teach them to
pray, Luk 11:1-13, He did not mean for them to mechanically repeat
the words that He gave, but to have dialogue, interaction with their
Father. There is nothing magical about the words of the Lord’s
Prayer. Neither is there anything magical about closing a prayer
with the phrase, “In Jesus name.” It is not the saying of the words
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but the living of the meaning of them that gives prayer reality and
connection with God.
Prayer does not have its ground in the saying of words, in form or
contents. It matters not how much a man prays for forgiveness he
will not receive it if he is unforgiving to his brother. “Forgive us as
we forgive others…” Jesus taught.
2. Trusting in our faith in our prayers. It is said that if we just have
sufficient faith our prayers will be answered. That is, if we really
believe. And then when our prayers are not answered in the way
we want we are told that it is because we don’t have sufficient
faith. Jesus said that with a small amount of faith, “the size of a
grain of mustard seed” you could command a mountain to move.
“And He said to them, Because of the littleness of your faith; for
truly I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you
will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move;
and nothing will be impossible to you.” Mat 17:20
Both of these errors focus on man and his assumed ability. The
Scripture clearly says. “In the same way the Spirit also helps our
weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should” Rom 8:26
We would counter these two errors with two grounds for praying
are:
1. The fact that God is our Father.
When Jesus taught the disciples to pray, “He said to them, when
you pray, say: Father...” Luk 11:2 He was teaching us to come to
God as a father, that is on the grounds of a father child
relationship. Jesus goes on in the lesson to reinforce the
reasonableness of treating God as our Father. We can safely
expect that God will be a better, more loving, kind, and gentle
Heavenly Father than any earthly father. Our Heavenly Father is
not limited in the good that He can do for us.
Jesus did not put His faith in His prayers or in the faith of his
prayers. His strength came from the relationship that he had with
His Father.
We can claim the Fatherhood of God but our praying will be
fruitless if we don’t ground our praying in a second foundation.
2. The exercise of abiding in Him, i.e. an obedient relationship.
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Joh 15:4,7 “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear
fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless
you abide in Me… If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you,
ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.” What is it that
is not included in “whatever?” Anything and everything can be and
is ours when we truly abide in Him.
As we pray, privately or corporately, let’s not concern ourselves
with the method, manner, and even the matter of our prayers. Not
the loudness or the length of them. Let’s just be children of our
Heavenly Father and fellowship with Him and seek His will.
Sweet Hour of Prayer
Sweet hour of prayer, sweet hour of prayer,
That calls me from a world of care,
And bids me at my Father’s throne,
Make all my wants and wishes known!
In seasons of distress and grief,
My soul has often found relief,
And oft escaped the tempter’s snare
By thy return, sweet hour of prayer.
Sweet hour of prayer, sweet hour of prayer,
The joys I feel, the bliss I share
of those whose anxious spirits burn
with strong desires for thy return!
With such I hasten to the place
Where God, my Saviour, shows his face,
and gladly take my station there,
and wait for thee, sweet hour of prayer.
Sweet hour of prayer, sweet hour of prayer,
thy wings shall my petition bear
To Him, whose truth and faithfulness
Engage the waiting soul to bless:
And since he bids me seek his face,
Believe his word, and trust his grace,
I’ll cast on him my every care, and wait for thee,
Sweet hour of prayer.
By William W. Walford 1842
++++++++++++++++++++
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3. Revival
Never a Revival Without Mighty Praying
By R.A. Torrey
Prayer will do more to bring a deep and lasting and sweeping
revival, a revival that is real and lasting and altogether of the right
sort, than all the organizations that were ever devised by man.
The history of the Church of Jesus Christ on earth has been largely
a history of revivals. When you read many of the Church histories
that have been written, the impression that you naturally get is that
the history of the Church of Jesus Christ here on earth has been
very largely a history of misunderstandings, disputes, doctrinal
differences and bitter conflicts. But if you will study the history of the
living Church, you will find it has been very largely a history of
revivals. Humanly speaking the Church of Jesus Christ owes its
very existence today to revivals. many times the Church has
seemed to be on the verge of utter shipwreck, but just then God
has sent a great revival and saved it.
Every real revival in the Church has been the child of prayer. There
have been revivals without much preaching; there have been
revivals with absolutely no organization; but there has never been a
mighty revival without mighty praying.
What we need more than anything else today in our own land and
in all lands, is a real, mighty outpouring of the Spirit of God. The
most fundamental trouble with most of our present-day so-called
revivals is, that they are man-made and not God-sent. They are
worked up by man's cunningly devised machinery-not prayed down.
Oh, for an old-time revival, a revival that is really and not spuriously
of the Pentecostal pattern, for that revival was born of a fourteen
days' prayer-meeting. But let us not merely sigh for it. Let us cry for
it, cry to God, cry long and cry loud if need be, and then it will surely
come!...
++++++++++++++++++++
Prayer and Revival
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What is a “Real Prayer Meeting?” It is united prayer. “The prayer
that God particularly delights to answer is united prayer. There is
power in the prayer of a single individual, and the prayer of
individuals has wrought great things, but there is far greater power
in united prayer.” (R.A. Torrey, The Power of Prayer)
What wond’rous grace! who knows its full extent?
A creature, dust and ashes, speaks with God-Tells all his woes, enumerates his wants,
Yea, pleads with Deity, and gains relief.
’Tis prayer, yes, ’tis ‘effectual, fervent prayer,’
Puts dignity on worms, proves life divine,
Makes demons tremble, breaks the darkest cloud,
And with a princely power prevails with God!
And shall this privilege become a task?
My God, forbid! Pour out thy Spirit's grace,
Draw me by love, and teach me how to pray.
Yea, let Thy holy unction from above
Beget, extend, maintain my intercourse
with Father, Son, and Spirit, Israel’s God,
Until petitions are exchanged for praise
Irons.
Never a Revival Without Mighty Praying By R.A. Torrey
Ps 854-6 “Turn us, O God of our salvation, And cause thine
indignation toward us to cease. Wilt thou be angry with us for ever?
Wilt thou draw out thine anger to all generations? Wilt thou not
quicken us again, That thy people may rejoice in thee?”
Prayer will do more to bring a deep and lasting and sweeping
revival, a revival that is real and lasting and altogether of the right
sort, than all the organizations that were ever devised by man.
251
The history of the Church of Jesus Christ on earth has been largely
a history of revivals. When you read many of the Church histories
that have been written, the impression that you naturally get is that
the history of the Church of Jesus Christ here on earth has been
very largely a history of misunderstandings, disputes, doctrinal
differences and bitter conflicts. But if you will study the history of the
living Church, you will find it has been very largely a history of
revivals. Humanly speaking the Church of Jesus Christ owes its
very existence today to revivals. many times the Church has
seemed to be on the verge of utter shipwreck, but just then God
has sent a great revival and saved it.
Every real revival in the Church has been the child of prayer. There
have been revivals without much preaching; there have been
revivals with absolutely no organization; but there has never been a
mighty revival without mighty praying.
What we need more than anything else today in our own land and
in all lands, is a real, mighty outpouring of the Spirit of God. The
most fundamental trouble with most of our present-day so-called
revivals is, that they are man-made and not God-sent. They are
worked up by man's cunningly devised machinery-not prayed down.
Oh, for an old-time revival, a revival that is really and not spuriously
of the Pentecostal pattern, for that revival was born of a fourteen
days' prayer-meeting. But let us not merely sigh for it. Let us cry for
it, cry to God, cry long and cry loud if need be, and then it will surely
come!...
No great spiritual awakening has begun anywhere in the world
apart from united prayer---Christians persistently praying for revival. J. Edwin Orr
The revival of religion and the revival of prayer are inseparable.
+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + ++
Revival Prayer Meetings
Iain Murray in Revival and Revivalism, p 79 quotes Jesse Lee, He
described the year 1787:
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“There was a remarkable revival of religion in the town of
Petersburgh, and many of the inhabitants were savingly converted;
and the Christians greatly revived. That town never witnessed
before or since such wonderful displays of the presence and love of
God in salvation of immortal souls. Prayer meetings were
frequently held both in the town and in the country, and souls were
frequently converted at those meetings, even when there was no
preacher present; for the prayers and exhortations of the members
were greatly owned of the Lord.
“The most remarkable work of all was in Sussex and Brunswick
circuits, where the meetings would frequently continue five or six
hours together, and sometimes all night.
“At one quarterly meeting held at Mabry’s Chapel in Brunswick
circuit, on the ;25th and 26th of July, the power of God was among
the people in an extraordinary manner: some hundreds were
awakened; and it was supposed that above one hundred souls
were converted at that meeting, which continued for two days, i.e.,
on Thursday and Friday. Some thousands of people attended
meeting at that place on that occasion.
“The next quarterly meeting was held at Jones’s Chapel, in
Sussex county, on Saturday and Sunday, the 27th and 28th of July.
This meeting was favored with more of the divine presence than
any other that had been know before . . .
“The great revival of religion in 1776, which spread extensively
through the south part of Virginia, exceeded any thing of the kind
that had ever been known before in that part of the country. But the
revival this year far exceeded it.
“It was thought that in the course of that summer there were so
many as sixteen hundred souls converted in Sussex circuit; in
Brunswick circuit about eighteen hundred; and in Amelia circuit
about eight hundred. In these three circuits we had the greatest
revival of religion; but in many other circuits there was a gracious
work, and hundreds were brought to God in the course of that year.
“. . . the work was not confined to meetings for preaching; at
prayer meetings the work prospered and many souls were born
again . . . It was common to hear of souls being brought to God
while at work in their houses or in their fields. It was often the case
that the people in their corn-fields, white people, or black, and
sometimes both together, would begin to sing, and being affected
would begin to pray, and others would join with them, and they
would continue their cries till some of them would find peace to their
souls.”
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++++++++++++++++++++
4. Testimonial
A Call for National Repentance
The United States of America is in the midst of a moral crisis. The
outrages against God are so many that I will not begin to list them
here. Society has tried educating these problems away (sex
education, drug education), throwing new technology and money at
these problems (schools need more funding or more computers),
and analysing ourselves to death (i.e. pop psychology). God is
calling us to repent for our sins and pray for the healing of our
nation.
A Case of Repentance
After the American Revolution, there was a moral and spiritual
crisis in America. Drunkeness was epidemic. 6% of the population
were confirmed drunkards. 15,000 deaths annually were a result of
alcohol. Shocking profanity was become a fashionable movement.
Assault against America women was increasing so that women fear
leaving their homes. Churches were at an all time low in
attendance. US Supreme Court Chief Justice John Marshall wrote
"The church is too far gone ever to be redeemed." Voltaire said that
Christianity would be forgotten in 30 years time. Kentucky had all
but become a criminal state.
In 1794, Isaac Backus, a Baptist pastor, made a plea for repentant
prayer. The first Monday evening of each month a small number
(about 30) ministers prayed for revival.
Within 5 years the following effects were seen: 1800, the Great
Kentucky revival (with over 11,000 saved in one service); 600
colleges were founded by revivalist; the US missionary movement
started; the impetus for the abolition of slavery; Yale, in a little over
a year, went from an institution of infidelity to a student body
represented by approximately 50% strongly professed Christians;
the foundation of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign
Missions; and the foundation of the American Bible Society.
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A Plan for Repentance
Starting April 7, 1997 and every first Monday evening from 7PM 9PM EST I will be devoting myself to prayer for a revival in the
United States. I will, of course, be recruiting people locally to pray
with me.
I would like to hear from Christians who will commit to pray with me,
where ever you are. I will be journaling testimonies and reporting
anything exciting to all involved.
God Bless You! David Rettig dgrettig@j3com.net 5355 Great Oak
Drive Apt H, Columbus, OH 43213
++++++++++++++++++++
Pray for Kings & Governments
1 Tim 2:1-8 “First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers,
petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings
and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and
quiet life in all godliness and dignity.”
Most of us, at least occasionally, pray for the leaders and
authorities in various countries of the world. I fear that we do this
without expecting any results.
Bill Bright gives the following story in Changing the World Through
Prayer, leaders guide p 22. “An Old Testament illustration of how
God uses His Word to encourage us to pray is found in Daniel 9:123... Daniel lived at a time when the nation of Israel was in captivity.
But God had promised that he would deliver His people. Daniel
was reading the Scriptures, specifically the words of the prophet
Jeremiah. As Daniel read, he noticed that Jeremiah predicted that
the Israelites would be in captivity for seventy years. That time was
almost up. When he understood what Jeremiah was saying about
the release of God’s people from their captivity, Daniel turned to
pray. God answered that prayer by fulfilling His promise to release
His people after seventy years.
“Do you see the link between prayer and God’s Word in this
example? Daniel prayed based on what was written in God’s Word.
God honored Daniel’s faithfulness to the Word. In a similar way,
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God will use His Word to speak to us, and that will open up
avenues for our prayers.
“Let me give you a dramatic example. In 1986, the director of
Campus Crusade for Christ in Russia was praying for that land,
which was then dominated by a Communist government. The
people were oppressed, especially believers. Christians were not
allowed to worship God freely, and many lost their lives as a result
of their faith. The director, who was reading this same passage in
Daniel, was amazed when he read the story of Daniel’s prayer
about the faithfulness of God in releasing the captive Israelites.
The Israelites’ situation and that of the Russian people were
parallel in one way. Communism began in Russia in 1917. Since it
was now 1986, the Russians had endured almost seventy years of
Communist captivity. The director was impressed by God to pray
that the years of Russian Communist repression would end. Would
God repeat history?
“The director shared his vision for the end of Communist rule with
other believers and Russian pastors. They began praying together.
Then in 1987, perestroika began and Russia’s Communist
government crumbled. Believers were now able to worship and
witness freely.
“Of course, we must be careful about what we assume God is
saying to us. We should always look toward God’s Word to make
sure what we pray is according to His will. But when we feel God
impressing us to pray in a certain way, we can forge ahead with
what He is telling us. At the same time, we must never forget that
God is in control and that what we think may happen is not
necessarily what God will do. God still speaks to men and women
today through His Word--and often with miraculous and thrilling
results.”
Dick Eastman in his book Love on its Knees, p 13 gives us a
similiar story. “Several years ago, in May 1986, I was preparing to
take School of Prayer training to Poland at the invitation of a
dynamic young pastor from Pittsburgh, Mark Geppert. Six weeks
prior to my departure for Eastern Europe, I met with Mark to finalize
our schedule. There’s been a change in my itinerary,’ Mark said.
‘I’ll meet you in Warsaw as planned, but first I’ll be going to the
Soviet Union for a month.’
256
“ ‘The Soviet Union?’ I asked, puzzled. ‘What will you be doing
there?’ ‘I’m going to pray,’ Mark responded. ‘God spoke to me a
few days ago and told me I was to go to Russia just to pray. He
told me exactly where to go and what to pray about. I’m to pray
that God will shake all of Russia. I’ll ask Hiim to use current
events--whatever they are--to shake what can be shaken, so doors
will open to the Gospel and believers will have a new freedom to
worship.’
“Thrilled that someone would go anywhere ‘just to pray,’ I asked
Mark to be sure to send me a copy of his itinerary so our ministry
could be praying with him before I joined him in Warsaw. The
itinerary arrived and I thought little of the specifics until a few days
before my departure. Suddenly, Mark’s presence in the Soviet
Union praying for God to shake that nation held unusual
significance. Just before my departure at the end of April 1986,
headlines shouted the story of a shocking incident that occurred
there at a nuclear power plant in a small city named Chernobyl.
Chernobyl, the papers said, was just a short distance from the
sprawling Soviet city of Kiev. Wasn’t Kiev on Mark’s itinerary? In
fact, if memory served me, wasn’t Kiev the final place God told him
to visit?
“I immediately got out the letter Mark sent me listing the places God
told him to visit. My recollection had been accurate. Mark’s mission
was to end that very weekend in Kiev with a train trip to Poland that
would take him right through the area of disaster. I had been on a
train trip with Mark before, in China. To Mark a train is just a long
prayer meeting on tracks, moving from one place of prayer to
another.
“Checking the itinerary more carefully, I noted that Mark had
planned to leave Keiv late on the evening of April 25, 1986, and
would be passing close to Chernobyl early the next morning. That
happened to be the exact time of the explosion of Chernobyl’s
nuclear power plant.
“Only later would analysts see that Chernobyl played a major role in
the events of glasnost, the Russian word for openness. Under
normal circumstances the Soviets would have kept secret the news
of such a disaster. But this was not possible with Chernobyl. In a
matter of hours after the nuclear accident, scientists spotted a
sudden elevation of radiation in Sweden. The source could be
traced with absolute accuracy to the Soviet Ukraine.
257
“So in the case of Chernobyl, glasnost was forced onto the Soviets.
Being secretive was not an option. Suddenly, whether they wanted
to or not, they were forced to be open. I couldn’t wait to see Mark
in Warsaw. Had he kept his itinerary? If so, how had God asked
him to pray?
“We had hardly checked into our hotel in Warsaw before I was
asking my questions. Mark indeed had kept his schedule, exactly
as the Lord directed. It included four days of prayer in Kiev, ending
on Friday, April 25. That day was to be the culmination of his
mission of intercession. And now I was more anxious than ever to
hear how directed Mark to pray.
“‘Well,’ said Mark, settling back in his chair in our hotel room, ‘I
went to the square in the center of Kiev and sat down under a huge
statue of Lenin. Every fifteen minutes I changed the focus of my
intercession for believers in Russia. I could tell when a fifteenminute period passed because there was a gigantic clock in the
square that let out a bong each quarter hour.’
“I asked Mark if he felt anything unusual during this prayer. ‘Only at
the end,’ Mark responded. ‘lt was on the last day, the day I made
my final prayer visit to the city square. Just before noon I was
suddenly convinced God had heard and that even then something
was happening. Something that would shake the Soviet Union.
Something God would use to bring more freedom.’
“With excitement Mark continued, ‘I began to lift my voice in praise,
sitting there underneath the statue of the founder of Communism in
Russia. But at the same time I needed a confirmation that God had
heard me, so I cried out to Him: ‘O God, give me a sign, even a
little sign.’ I waited, wondering what might happen next. And just
then in the distance the hands of the huge clock moved into the
twelve o’clock position.’
“Mark laughed as he continued, ‘And you know what, Brother Dick?
It didn’t gong. Every hour, for each of the four days I had been
praying, the clock had chimed on the hour. So I waited for twelve
chimes, but they never came. It was as if God was saying an old
pattern was over. The very next day I began hearing about
Chernobyl.’
“Weeks later, after reading volumes on the significance of
Chernobyl, I came across fascinating information detailing events
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surrounding the disaster. Scientists pinpointed the first major
mistake as happening twelve hours before the actual meltdown.
This would have been within minutes of Mark’s declaration of
praise, when he knew in his spirit that events were occurring that
the Lord would turn into a blessing.
“Later still I heard a television commentator discussing the longterm impact of the Chernobyl disaster. ‘Chernobyl,’ he said, ‘means
Wormwood in the Russian language. Wouldn’t it be interesting if a
decade from today we were to discover that the despotic Soviet
system had disappeared from the scene, replaced by a more open
society, and that this change came about as the result of a simple
mistake at a nuclear facility in a small Ukrainian community called .
. . Chernobyl?’
“It would seem that glasnost may be taking hold more rapidly than
anyone was prepared for, opening doors where the Gospel had
previously been hindered. Just two years after Chernobyl, new
laws were beings readied that amounted to an extraordinary retreat
from power on the of Soviet authorities. None other than Soviet
Deputy Justice Minister Mikhail P. Vyshinsky said, ‘A revolution is
taking place here. Not everyone realizes this, but that is what it is-a revolution.’
“And then came the big news. At the historic General Conference of
all party leaders, first in 47 years, Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev
made a series of statements concerning coming changes. Among
them was a call for new tolerance toward the religious faiths in the
Soviet Union--although, to be sure, Communism is still atheistic at
its roots, and when dealing with the purported changes this should
always be kept in mind .
“Intercessors like Mark are rarely surprised when answers come.
In fact, I’m convinced that when we stand before God with the
record of spiritual successes and failures, we will learn that
intercessory prayer had more to do with bringing about positive
changes in our world than any other single spiritual activity.
“Intercessors, in short, hold the key to releasing God’s best for the
world.”
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No doubt that we will be using the first few hundred years in
Heaven sharing just such stories as these two.
God moves in a mysterious way
His wonders to perform;
He plants His footsteps in the sea,
And rides upon the storm.
Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take;
The clouds ye so much dread
Are filled with mercies, and shall break
In blessings ’round thy head.
++++++++++++++++++++
Edward Payson
E. M. Bounds in his classic little book "Power Through Prayer",
wrote, "What the Church needs today is not more or better
machinery, not new organizations or more and novel methods, but
men whom the Holy Ghost can use - men of prayer, men mighty in
prayer."
Edward Payson was just such a man; a man mighty in prayer. "He
prayed without ceasing and felt safe nowhere but at the throne of
grace. He may be said to have studied theology on his knees.
Much of his time he spent literally prostrated with his Bible open
before him pleading the promise; "I will send the comforter and
when He, The Spirit of Truth is come, He will guide you into all
truth." Payson's advice to his fellow ministers was, "prayer is the
first thing, the second thing and the third thing necessary to a
minister. Pray then my dear brother, pray, pray." It has been well
said that the secret of Edward Payson's ministry was that he prayed
much in secret. The scars on his bedroom floor testify to this fact.
Next to Payson's bed where deep grooves in the hardwood floor
were his knees had pressed repeatedly in times of travail.
To read "Praying Payson's" diary is to be touched by his heart
260
longings and tender love for Jesus and the lost. On January 4,
1807, he wrote, "I was favored with a spirit of prayer beyond all my
former experience. I was in great agony and wrestled both for
myself and others with great power. God seemed to bow the
heavens and come down and open all His treasures, bidding me,
take what I would."
January 29th, "I never felt such longings after God or such a desire
to depart to be with Christ. My soul thirsted for more full communion
with my God and Savior. I do not now feel satisfied as I used to with
the manifestations of the divine presence, but still feel hungry and
craving." February 18, "I was enabled to lie at Jesus' feet and to
wash them with the tears of contrition. No pleasure I have ever
found in the Christian life is superior to this." February 28, "I was
favored with great enlargement in prayer. I seemed to be carried
out of myself into the presence of God."
Like all true men of prayer, Payson understood the need for true
humility. "It was the burden of his secret prayers that he might be
delivered from pride, from self-seeking, from preaching himself
instead of Christ Jesus the Lord." Through humility and fervent
prayer he was always in hopes of seeing a fresh wave of revival.
"The revivals which took place under his labors where numerous
and where characterized by a depth and power seldom seen."
Often Payson congregation was overwhelmed with a sense of
Christ's presence and power and irresistibly brought to tears. Mr.
Payson's diary testifies of the power and necessity of prayer for
revival. September 27th, "In the evening I was favored with great
faith and fervency in prayer. It seemed as if God would deny me
nothing, and I wrestled for multitudes of souls, and could not help
hoping there would be revival here." September 28, "I was favored
with the greatest degree of freedom and fervency in interceeding
for others. I seemed to travail in birth with poor sinners and could
not help hoping the God is about to do somethings for His glory and
the good of souls." Within days, "Praying Payson" saw his prayers
answered through a fresh work of revival power.
On April 23, 1808, Edward Payson wrote, "My heart seemed ready
to break with its longings after holiness." Such longings for heart
purity, revival power and the person of Jesus are the marks of a
healthy and normal Christian life. The lack of these precious things
in the modern Church reveal a nominal* Christian life. Too much of
what is called the Church today is not fit to live or die. The nominal*
Christian is unfit to deal with our demon possessed age or the
261
coming judgment seat of Christ. Truly the Church's greatest need is
for men and women, mighty in prayer. We need men and women
who will pray and crave for revival. The choice is ours, either to
pray or to perish.
From the Heart of Edward Payson "It is natural to man, from his
earliest infancy, to cry for relief when in danger or distress, if he
supposes that any one able to relieve him is within hearing of his
cries. Every man then who feels his own dependence upon God,
and his need of blessings which God only can bestow, will pray to
Him. He will feel that prayer is not only his duty, but his highest
privilege. The man then who refuses or neglects to pray, who
regards prayer not as a privilege, but as a wearisome and needless
task practically says in the most unequivocal manner, I am not
dependent on God; I want nothing that He can give; and therefore I
will not come to Him, nor ask anything from His hand. I will not ask
Him to crown my work with success, for I am able, and determined,
to be the architect of my own future. I will not ask Him to instruct or
guide me, for I am competent to be my own instructor and guide. I
will not ask Him to strengthen and support me, for I am strong in
the vigor and resources of my own mind. I will not request His
protection, for I am able to protect myself. I will not implore His
pardoning mercy nor His sanctifying grace for I have need of
neither the one nor the other. I will not ask His presence and aid in
the hour of death. For I can meet and grapple, unsupported, with
the king of terrors, and enter, undaunted and alone, any unknown
world into which He may usher me. Such is the language of all who
neglect prayer. "
++++++++++++++++++++
The Moravian Prayer Experience
The Homeless Piled In; Missionary Pioneers Poured Out.
Imagine that you have a big house and ample land. Imagine further
that a refugee shows up at your door asking if he might camp out in
your backyard for awhile. You are moved to compassion and say
OK. A little later he asks if some of his relatives, who are also
homeless, might also come and live on your property. You are a
Christian. These people are also believers. How can you turn them
away? So again you say yes. But then many more hear and they
too come. And more. And more! Soon there are hundreds. What
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have you gotten yourself into, you begin to wonder?
Something like that is what happened to a 22-year-old German
nobleman in 1722. His name was Niklaus Ludwig von Zinzendorf.
His estate was in East Germany. He was heir to one of Europe's
leading royal families. As you might expect, the neighbors were not
too pleased with his offering the "riff-raff" asylum near them. But
there was no stopping the influx. The first group of ten arrived in
December, 1722. By May of 1725 there were ninety. And by late
1726 over 300. The place was known as "Herrnhut" meaning "The
Lord's Watch." It soon developed into a small city of grateful and
motivated Christian craftsmen and laypeople.
As Zinzendorf looked at what he had gotten himself into, he began
to realize that instead of being burdened, he was being blessed
with one of the historic opportunities of all time. His refugee
crowded estate within a little more than a decade would be
transformed into one of the most dynamic and strategic missionary
launching pads since the early church.
Zinzendorf Was a Rich Young Ruler Who Said Yes
Zinzendorf was born on May 26, 1700, in Dresden, Germany and
brought up under strong Christian influence. Even as a child he
showed a deep spiritual awareness. Invading Swedish soldiers
broke into the castle where he lived when he was six years old and
were astounded to observe the child's prayers. Zinzendorf later
trained at Halle under the Pietist movement leader August Francke.
At age twenty the young nobleman was overcome while observing
a painting of Christ crowned with thorns. An inscription below the
painting said: "I have done this for you; what have you done for
me?" Zinzendorf responded that day: "I have loved him for a long
time, but I have never actually done anything for him. From now on
I will do whatever he leads me to do." No doubt at that moment he
had no idea that within two years he would have his estate
swarming with homeless people from Moravia. Nor could he have
imagined the role that would be his in bringing the message of
Christ to the whole world. There followed a rapid succession of
events. Some of the highlights:
<> The community rapidly organized into an efficient and
productive little society.
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<> But then jealousy, divisions and discord set in and threatened to
undermine them.
<> Zinzendorf organized everyone into "bands." These were small
groups who met together regularly to discuss their spiritual growth,
study Scripture, pray together, reprove and encourage each other.
<> The Moravian community was moved to repentance for its
divisions, and on August 13, 1727 they experienced a powerful
outpouring of the Holy Spirit.
<>They began to pray fervently and seek the purposes for which
God had brought them together under Zinzendorf. What did he
want them to do?
<> A twenty-four-hour-a-day prayer chain was organized. At least
two people were at prayer every hour of the day. This prayer
meeting would last over 100 years.
<> They became known by the nickname "God's Happy People."
<> Anthony, a former slave, came to speak at Herrnhut of the
deplorable conditions of the slaves in the West Indies. The night he
spoke, two of their young Moravians could not sleep as they
struggled with a sense that God was moving their hearts to offer
themselves to go and minister to those slaves. When they were told
that perhaps the only way they could do this was to become slaves
themselves, they said they were willing if that is what it would take.
<> Their first two missionaries, Leonard Dober and David
Nitschmann, left Herrnhut on August 25, 1732 to sail for St.
Thomas.
<> Thereafter, other lands were studied and more missionaries
were sent. They went to the toughest places under the most severe
conditions. Many of them quickly died. For example, of 18 who
went to St. Thomas as reinforcements for the work begun by Dober
and Nitschmann, half died within the first nine months. But, the
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more that died, the more that volunteered to go to replace them.
Within 25 years more than 200 had gone out as missionaries from
this small community to every continent of the world.
<> Their influence spread far beyond their own efforts. Consider
two notable examples. Moravians played the key role in the
profound religious experience of John Wesley. Wesley went on to
lead the Methodist movement. William Carey is popularly hailed as
the "Father of Modern Protestant Missions." But William Carey
sailed 60 years after the first Moravian missionaries went to the
West Indies. Carey would probably insist that the real father of
modern missions was Zinzendorf and the Moravians. In Carey's
classic "Enquiry Regarding the Obligation of Christians" he used
the Moravian experience as a model. In his letters and journal he
often referred to them and drew inspiration from their example, and
in his "Serampore Compact" -- a covenant for Christian missionary
community living -- he again appealed to Moravian precedents.
<> Their influence extended to North America. The Moravians
founded two communities in Eastern Pennsylvania -- Bethlehem
and Nazareth. Zinzendorf personally came to the colonies. Not far
from the offices of Christian History Institute, and long before the
word "Ecumenism" was in vogue, Zinzendorf pled unsuccessfully
with the various religious communities in Eastern Pennsylvania to
transcend their European denominational backgrounds and witness
and work together as one Body of Christ.
<> While in America, Zinzendorf legally renounced his titles
because he found them an impediment among the colonists.
Benjamin Franklin was present at the ceremony, which was
conducted in Latin in front of the Governor of Pennsylvania.
Zinzendorf was said to be the only European nobleman who went
among the Indians, visiting their leaders as equals.
<> Though Zinzendorf did not promote the abolition of slavery,
inside the Moravian Church slaves were truly equal. In Bethlehem,
PA, at the Single Sisters' House you could find a German
noblewoman, a Delaware Indian, and an African slave sleeping
side by side in the same dormitory room. Where else in the world at
that time might that occur?
<> Zinzendorf endured much criticism for allowing women to
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preach and to hold roles of leadership in the church.
A New Phenomenon
Think of what it would mean if everyone in your church thought of
themselves as missionaries. They did at Herrnhut, and this
represented a significant development in the history of Christian
missions. Eminent Yale University historian, Dr. Kenneth Scott
Latourette, in his classic History of the Expansion of Christianity
commented, "Here was a new phenomenon in the expansion of
Christianity, an entire community, of families as well as of the
unmarried, devoted to the propagation of the faith. In its singleness
of aim it resembled some of the monastic orders of the earlier
centuries, but these were made up of celibates. Here was a
fellowship of Christians, of laity and clergy, of men and women,
marrying and rearing families, with much of the quietism of the
monastery and of Pietism but with the spread of the Christian
message as a major objective, not of a minority of the membership,
but of the group as a whole."
Christian History Institute's Debt to Count Zinzendorf
Twenty years ago our sister company Gateway Films/Vision Video
was approached to make a dramatic film on the 250th anniversary
of the launch of the Moravian missionary movement under Count
Zinzendorf to be celebrated in 1982. We had already put out a film
on the life of the 15th century pre-Reformation martyr John Hus,
and we had also been requested by Wycliffe Bible Translators to
make a film on John Wycliffe for the 600th anniversary of his death.
Although these three films treated subjects that occurred over close
to four hundred years, we were struck by the amazing connection
among them. Wycliffe's movement and his memory were
condemned in England, but his plea for reform was carried to
Bohemia and advanced there by John Hus. The followers of Hus
formed the Unitas Fratrum, The Unity of the Brethren. They
somehow managed to survive three centuries of persecution and
became the major core of the Moravian refugees who settled on the
estate of Count Zinzendorf beginning in 1722. Christian History
Institute was founded to provide educational print support materials
for such films. Our first project was Christian History magazine with
the first issue devoted to Zinzendorf. Incidentally, the magazine
soon demonstrated that it deserved a life of its own and we are
pleased to have it now published by Christianity Today Inc. The film
266
we made on Zinzendorf was a drama titled First Fruits. That was
the catalyst that led us to recognize that our primary calling in both
film and publishing was the telling of the stories from our Christian
history for lay audiences.
On May 12, 1727, Zinzendorf addressed the community for three
hours on the blessedness of Christian unity. The people sorrowfully
confessed their past quarreling and promised to live in love and
simplicity. Herrnhut became a living congregation of Christ. The
entire summer of 1727 was a golden one at Herrnhut as the
community worked together in peace and love. There was eager
anticipation that more was to come.
A turning point On August 5, Zinzendorf and fourteen of the
Brethren spent the entire night in conversation and prayer. On
August 10th, Pastor Rothe was so overcome by God's nearness
during an afternoon service at Herrnhut, that he threw himself on
the ground during prayer and called to God with words of
repentance as he had never done before. The congregation was
moved to tears and continued until midnight, praising God and
singing.
The next morning, Pastor Rothe invited the Herrnhut community to
a joint communion with his nearby congregation at Bethelsdorf on
Wednesday evening, August 13. Count Zinzendorf visited every
house in Herrnhut in preparation for this Lord's Supper. The exiles,
gathered at Herrnhut, had come to a conviction of their own
sinfulness, need, and helplessness. During the service, they made
many painful prayers for themselves, for fellow Christians still under
persecution, and for their continued unity. Count Zinzendorf made a
penitential confession in the name of the congregation. The
community united in fellowship. Count Zinzendorf looked upon that
August 13th as "a day of the outpourings of the Holy Spirit upon the
congregation; it was its Pentecost."
Yes, for 100 years! Like the first Pentecost, men and women would
move forth with the gospel from Herrnhut to the uttermost parts of
the earth. Two weeks after the revival, twenty-four men and twentyfour women of the community covenanted together to spend one
hour each day, day and night, in prayer to God for His blessing on
the congregation and its witness.
267
For over 100 years, members of the Moravian church continued
nonstop in this "Hourly Intercession." All Moravian adventures were
begun, surrounded, and consummated in prayer. They became
known as "God's Happy People." They launched a missionary
society in a time when Protestant missions were unknown. The first
missionaries, two young men, declared their willingness to become
slaves if necessary to reach the slaves in the West Indies with the
Gospel. Within fifteen years of the revival, the Moravians at
Herrnhut had established missions in the Virgin Islands, Greenland,
Turkey, the Gold Coast of Africa, South Africa, and North America.
They endured unspeakable hardships. Many died in difficult
circumstances. But as fast as they died, others came forth to take
their places.
An unquenchable flame The eighteenth-century revivals in America
and England were influenced by the Moravian mission and prayer
movements. Peter Boehler, a Moravian missionary in England,
counseled John Wesley, later leader of the Revival in England,
leading to his conversion. Wesley wrote of Boehler, "Oh what a
work hath God begun since his coming to England! Such a one as
shall never come to an end, till heaven and earth pass away!" --but
that's the subject of our next issue.
A new phenomenon The noted historian, Kenneth Scott Latourette,
said of the Moravians: Here was a new phenomenon in the
expansion of Christianity, an entire community, of families as well
as of the unmarried, devoted to the propagation of the faith. In its
singleness of aim it resembled some of the monastic orders of
earlier centuries, but these were made up of celibates. Here was a
fellowship of Christians, of laity and clergy, of men and women,
marrying and rearing families, with much of the quietism of the
monastery and of Pietism but the spread of the Christian message
as a major objective, not of a minority of the membership, but of the
group as a whole.
GLIMPSES is published by Christian History Institute
Box 540
Worcester, PA 19490
Tel. 610-584-1893, Fax 610-584-4610
E-Mail chglimpses@aol.com
268
Prepared by Ken Curtis PH.D., Beth Jacobson, Diana Severance
Ph.D., Ann T. Snyder and Dan Graves. © by Christian History
Institute.
http://www.gospelcom.net/chi/GLIMPSEF/Glimpses/glmps037.shtm
l
++++++++++++++++++++
The Testimony of C.H. Spurgeon
Charles Haddon Spurgeon has been acclaimed to be the greatest
preacher since the Apostle Paul. He would not agree with that, he
would say George Whitefield or someone else. The fact remains
that what God did with him at and through the Metropolitan
Tabernacle in, London, England is recognized by many in all
different evangelical groups as to be greatest work ever in a local
church. He began preaching at that church in 1854 and died in
1892 and his ministry has continued until this moment, and
obviously will continue until the Lord comes. The New Park Street
Pulpit and The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit—the collected
sermons of Spurgeon during his ministry with that congregation—fill
63 volumes. The sermons' 20-25 million words are equivalent to the
27 volumes of the ninth edition of the Encyclopedia Britannica. The
series stands as the largest set of books by a single author in the
history of Christianity.
When Spurgeon arrived at The New Park Street Church, in 1854,
the congregation had 232 members. By the end of his pastorate, 38
years later, that number had increased to 5,311. Altogether, 14,460
people were added to the church during Spurgeon's tenure.) The
church was the largest independent congregation in the world.
Spurgeon began a pastors' college that trained nearly 900 students
during his lifetime-and it continues today. In 1865, Spurgeon's
sermons sold 25,000 copies every week. They were translated into
more than 20 languages. At least 3 of Spurgeon's works (including
the multi-volume Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit series) have sold
more than 1,000,000 copies.
Occasionally Spurgeon asked members of his congregation not to
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attend the next Sunday's service, so that newcomers might find a
seat. During one 1879 service, the regular congregation left so that
newcomers waiting outside might get in; the building immediately
filled again.
Mr. Spurgeon once wrote in “The Sword and the Trowel”:--“A
Wesleyan minister lately said that he was never more surprised in
his life than when he dropped into the Tabernacle, and found the
ground-floor and part of the gallery filled at a Prayer-meeting. He
believed that such a thing was almost without a parallel in London,
and that it accounted for the success of the ministry. We concur in
his impartial judgment. Will not all the churches try the power of
prayer?” (Only a Prayer Meeting, C. H. Spurgeon, introduction,
page v.)
“How are the prayer-meetings almost universally neglected?” says
Spurgeon. “ Our own church stands out like an almost solitary
green islet in the midst of a dark, dark, sea; one bright pearl in the
depths of an ocean of discord and confusion. Look at the
neighboring churches. Step into the vestry, and see a smaller band
of people than you would like to think of, assembled around the
pastor, whose heart is dull and heavy. Hear one brother after
another pour out the dull, monotonous prayer that he has said by
heart these fifty years; and then go away and say: ‘Where is the
spirit of prayer, where the life of devotion?’ Is it not almost extinct?
Are not our churches ‘fallen, fallen, fallen from their high estate?’
God wake them up, and send them more earnest and praying
men!” (The Prayer-Meeting, Lewis O. Thompson, 1874, page 190)
Note that Spurgeon agrees with the Wesleyan brother that the
“Prayer-meeting” was that which “accounted for the success of the
ministry.” Maybe Spurgeon could give us some advice about
conducting the prayer-meeting.
“Our brethren will excuse our offering them advice, and must take it
only for what it is worth; but having to superintend a large church
and to conduct a prayer-meeting which scarcely numbers less than
from a thousand to twelve hundred attendants, we will simply give
our own notions as to the most efficient method of promoting and
sustaining these holy gatherings.
1. Let the minister himself set a very high value upon this means of
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grace. A warm-hearted address of ten minutes, with a few lively
words interposed between the prayers, will do much, with God’s
blessing, to foster a love for the prayer-meeting....
2. Let the brethren labour after brevity.
If each person will offer the
petition most laid upon his heart by the Holy Spirit, and then make
room for another, the evening will be far more profitable, and the
prayers incomparably more fervent than if each brother ran round
the whole circle of petition without dwelling upon any one point. As
a general rule, meetings in which no prayer exceeds ten minutes,
and the most are under five, will exhibit the most fervour and life....
When we have had ten prayers in the hour, varied with the singing
of single verses, we have far oftener been in the Spirit, than when
only four persons have engaged in supplication....
3.
Persuade all the brethren to pray aloud. If the younger and
less-instructed members shrink from the privilege, tell them they
are not to speak to man, but to God. If a child may not talk at all till
it can speak fluent English, will it ever learn to speak well?...
4.
Encourage the attendants to send in special request for prayer
as often as they feel constrained to do so. These little scraps of
paper, in themselves most truly prayers, may be used as kindling to
the fire in the whole assemble....
5.
Suffer neither hymn, nor chapter, nor address, to supplant
prayer. Remember that we meet for prayer, and let it be prayer;
and, oh, that it may be that genuine, familiar converse with God
which shall drive out the formality and pomposity which so much
mar our public supplications!...
6.
It is not at all amiss to let two or even three competent brethren
succeed each other without a pause, but this must be done
judiciously; and if one of the three should become prolix(gabby or
long-winded), let the pause come in as soon as he has finished.
Sing only one verse, or at the most two, between the prayers, and
let those be such as shall not distract the mind from the subject....
Of course, we ought to have said all manner of good things about
the necessity of the Holy Spirit; but upon that matter we are all
agreed, knowing right well that all must be in vain without His
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presence. Our object has rather been to gather out the stones from
the way than to speak of the Divine life which alone can enable us
to run therein.” (Only a Prayer Meeting, p 26-30)
“How could we look for a Pentecost if we never met with one
accord, in one place, to wait upon the Lord? Brethren, we shall
never see much change for the better in our churches in general til
the prayer-meeting occupies a higher place in the esteem of
Christians.” (Only a Prayer-Meeting, p 11)
++++++++++++++++++++
Chapter Six: Praying Outlines
The following outlines are not for teaching the subject of prayer but
for praying. It is sometimes helpful to have an idea of what we
want to say in our prayer, private or corporate. This is especially
true when our spirits are cold and seemingly not willing to pray, but
pray we must. Having an outline of what we want to say in prayer
gives a blend of preparedness and extemporaneousness.
We prepare for most things especially the important things in life.
Why not prepare for the most important responsibility we have, to
pray.
To be totally extemporaneous in our praying is to put too much trust
in our mental ability. To be totally prepared, as in reading prayers,
tends to be deadening. A prayer written by someone else is not
really our prayer and difficult to make it become our prayer.
It is by the Holy Spirit that we pray, He gives us the will, the ability,
the energy to pray. What better way to cooperate with the Spirit
than to give Him His primary instrument for working in the hearts of
men, The Word of God. Eph 6:17 says “And take the helmet of
salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”
The Word of God is the Spirit’s sword, not ours to do with as we
see fit, but His to do as He sovereignly wills.
If using Scripture in our personal praying is helpful then it is even
more helpful in corporate praying. The essence of corporate
anything is all doing the same thing together. When every one in
the group is praying the same thing and that same thing is
Scriptural then we can expect to have the manifest presence of the
Holy Spirit. Using the Scripture is something visible and easy for
each person to focus on and be united with.
D.A. Carson said “Public praying is a pedagogical opportunity.” (A
Call to Spiritual Reformation) This is especially true when Scripture
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is used in prayer. The listener joins the one leading in prayer in
thinking and praying the same ideas and if those ideas are
Scriptural they are especially powerful to teach both the leader and
the follower in corporate prayer.
Quoting Scripture is not necessarily praying Scripture. At times we
do an should quote Scripture in our prayer. Praying Scripture is
taking the thoughts that are in a Scripture text and praying those
thoughts and principles as they relate to our life today. “Every
scripture is inspired by God and useful for teaching, for reproof, for
correction, and for training in righteousness, that the person
dedicated to God may be capable and equipped for every good
work.” 2 Tim 3:16,17 We don’t feel that we would be misusing the
Word of God by adding “..for praying.”
There isn't anything wrong with praying with our eyes open. It is
Scripture that we are looking to then it is a very good thing to have
our eyes open as we pray. Of course “praying with our eyes open”
as in looking for God to answer, is a very God honoring thing to do.
Reasons for preparation for praying:
1. It is the Spirit that empowers us to pray.
2. Nothing goes to God but what came from God. Rom 11:36
3. Using Scripture determines the content of our prayers. The
content of most prayers is determined subjectively, that is, from
within ourselves and not from God
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Textual
Old Testament
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
2 Chr 7:12-14
12 the LORD appeared to Solomon at night and said to him: “I have
answered your prayer and chosen this place to be my temple
where sacrifices are to be made. 13 When I close up the sky so
that it doesn’t rain, or command locusts to devour the land’s
vegetation, or send a plague among my people, 14 if my people,
who belong to me, humble themselves, pray, seek to please me,
and repudiate their sinful practices, then I will respond from
heaven, forgive their sin, and heal their land. 15 Now I will be
attentive and responsive to the prayers offered in this place.
God is here promising to hear prayer when His people are under
His judgment.
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The Promise: If my people:
The Basis:
who belong to me
The Conditions:
Humble themselves
Pray
Seek to please me
Repudiate their sin
The Answer:
I will respond from Heaven
Forgive their sin
Heal their land
The Confirmation
Now I will be attentive and responsive to the prayers offered in this
place.
Neh 9:6,7
"You alone are the Lord . You made the heavens, even the highest
heavens, along with all their multitude of stars, the earth and all
that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. You impart life to them
all, and the multitudes of heaven worship you. 7 You are the Lord
God who chose Abram and brought him forth from Ur of the
Chaldeans. You changed his name to Abraham."
Psalm 5
1 Listen to what I say, Lord! Carefully consider my complaint! 2 Pay
attention to my cry for help, my king and my God, for I am praying
to you! 3 Lord, in the morning you will hear me; in the morning I will
present my case to you and then wait expectantly for an answer. 4
Certainly you are not a God who approves of evil; evil people
cannot dwell with you. 5 Arrogant people cannot stand in your
presence; you hate all who behave wickedly. 6 You destroy liars;
the Lord despises violent and deceitful people. 7 But as for me,
because of your great faithfulness I will enter your house; I will bow
down toward your holy temple as I worship you. 8 Lord, vindicate
me as you lead me, because of those who wait to ambush me,
remove the obstacles in the way in which you are guiding me! 9 For
they do not speak the truth; their stomachs are like the place of
destruction, their throats like an open grave, their tongues like a
slippery slope leading into it. 10 Condemn them, O God! May their
own schemes be their downfall! Drive them away because of their
many acts of insurrection, for they have rebelled against you. 11
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But may all who take shelter in you be happy! May they continually
shout for joy! Shelter them, so that those who are loyal to you may
rejoice! 12 Certainly you reward the godly, Lord. Like a shield you
protect them in your good favor.
Ps 23
1 The LORD [is] my shepherd; I shall not want. 2 He maketh
me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still
waters. 3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of
righteousness for his name's sake. 4 Yea, though I walk through
the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou [art]
with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. 5 Thou preparest
a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest
my head with oil; my cup runneth over. 6 Surely goodness and
mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the
house of the LORD for ever.
Psa 25
1 O LORD, I come before you in prayer.
2 My God, I trust in you. Please do not let me be humiliated; do not
let my enemies triumphantly rejoice over me!
3 Certainly none who rely on you will be humiliated. Those who
deal in treachery will be thwarted and humiliated.
4 Make me understand your ways, O LORD! Teach me your paths!
5 Guide me into your truth and teach me. For you are the God who
delivers me; on you I rely all day long.
6 Remember your compassionate and faithful deeds, O LORD,
for you have always acted in this manner.
7 Do not hold against me the sins of my youth or my rebellious
acts!
Because you are faithful to me, extend to me your favor, O LORD!
8 The LORD is both kind and fair; that is why he teaches sinners the
right way to live.
9 May he show the humble what is right! May he teach the humble
his way!
10 The LORD always proves faithful and reliable to those who follow
the demands of his covenant.
11 For the sake of your reputation, O LORD, forgive my sin,
because it is great.
12 The LORD shows his faithful followers the way they should live.
13 They experience his favor; their descendants inherit the land.
14 The LORD’s loyal followers receive his guidance, and he reveals
his covenantal demands to them.
15 I continually look to the LORD for help, for he will free my feet
from the enemy’s net.
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16 Turn toward me and have mercy on me, for I am alone and
oppressed!
17 Deliver me from my distress; rescue me from my suffering!
18 See my pain and suffering! Forgive all my sins!
19 Watch my enemies, for they outnumber me; they hate me and
want to harm me.
20 Protect me and deliver me! Please do not let me be humiliated,
for I have taken shelter in you!
21 May integrity and godliness protect me, for I rely on you!
22 O God, rescue Israel from all their distress!
Ps 91
1 He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide
under the shadow of the Almighty. 2 I will say of the LORD, [He
is] my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. 3 Surely
he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, [and] from the
noisome pestilence. 4 He shall cover thee with his feathers, and
under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth [shall be thy] shield and
buckler. 5 Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; [nor] for
the arrow [that] flieth by day; 6 [Nor] for the pestilence [that]
walketh in darkness; [nor] for the destruction [that] wasteth at
noonday.
Ps 111
1 Praise ye the LORD. I will praise the LORD with [my] whole
heart, in the assembly of the upright, and [in] the congregation. 2
The works of the LORD [are] great, sought out of all them that have
pleasure therein. 3 His work [is] honourable and glorious: and his
righteousness endureth for ever. 4 He hath made his wonderful
works to be remembered: the LORD [is] gracious and full of
compassion. 5 He hath given meat unto them that fear him: he
will ever be mindful of his covenant. 6 He hath shewed his
people the power of his works, that he may give them the heritage
of the heathen. 7 The works of his hands [are] verity and
judgment; all his commandments [are] sure.
Ps 139
1 O LORD, thou hast searched me, and known [me]. 2 Thou
knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my
thought afar off. 3 Thou compassest my path and my lying down,
and art acquainted [with] all my ways. 4 For [there is] not a word
in my tongue, [but], lo, O LORD, thou knowest it altogether. 5
Thou hast beset me behind and before, and laid thine hand upon
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me. 5 Thou hast beset me behind and before, and laid thine hand
upon me. 6 [Such] knowledge [is] too wonderful for me; it is high,
I cannot [attain] unto it. 7 Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or
whither shall I flee from thy presence? 8 If I ascend up into
heaven, thou [art] there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou [art
there]. 9 [If] I take the wings of the morning, [and] dwell in the
uttermost parts of the sea;
Jer 33:3
''Call to Me and I will answer you, and I will tell you great and
mighty things, which you do not know.''
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New Testament
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Luke 11:2-4
The original and no doubt the best outline for prayer, private or
corporate is the model prayer that our gave us when the disciples
as “Teach us to pray..” Notice the outline of the three verses Luke
11:2-4:
Note there are two prayers here: 1. The disciples ask to be taught
to pray. 2. The model prayer that is that is the answer to the first.
I. Worship
“Father, may your name be honored,”
Personally acknowledging and declaring the attributes of God.
II. Kingdom praying
“may your kingdom come.”
Here we pray for the progress of what God is doing on earth, for the
progress of His plan of redemption.
III. Personal needs praying
“Give us each day our daily bread, “
We have authority to ask for our needs but not out wants. There is
much to thank God for in what He has already provided.
IV. Asking for forgiveness
“and forgive us our sins,”
As long as we are in this world and this flesh we will need to ask for
forgiveness both for our personal sins and for our corporate sins.
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V. Praying for our interpersonal relationships
“for we also forgive everyone who sins against us.”
VI. Pray for the future and our safety into and through it.
“And do not lead us into temptation.”
Most of us know the Lord’s model prayer well enough to follow
outline with eyes closed. Just think the words of the prayer and let
them remind you of the subject they suggest.
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Its all about God
Rom 11:33-36
Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God!
How unsearchable are his judgments and
how fathomless his ways!
For who has known the mind of the Lord , or
who has been his counselor?
Or who has first given to God, that God needs to repay him?
For from him and through him and to him are all things.
To him be glory forever! Amen.
To quote these verses, pausing at each thought, and expressing
adoration and praise is to pray
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Eph 3:14
13 For this reason I ask you not to lose heart because of what I am
suffering for you, which is your glory. 14 For this reason I bow my
knees before the Father, 15 from whom every family in heaven
and on the earth is named. 16 I pray that according to the wealth
of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power
through his Spirit in the inner man, 17 that Christ may dwell in your
hearts through faith, so that, by being rooted and grounded in love,
18 you may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the
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breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and thus to know the
love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled
up to all the fullness of God. 20 Now to him who by the power that
is working within us is able to do far beyond all that we ask or think,
21 to him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all
generations, forever and ever. Amen.
Eph 3:19
16 That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to
be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; 17 That
Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and
grounded in love, 18 May be able to comprehend with all saints
what [is] the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; 19 And to
know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be
filled with all the fulness of God. 20 Now unto him that is able to do
exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to
the power that worketh in us,
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Eph 6:18
“With every prayer and petition, pray at all times in the Spirit, and to
this end be alert, with all perseverance and requests for all the
saints. 19 Pray for me, that I may be given the message when I
begin to speak—that I may confidently make known the mystery of
the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I
may be able to speak boldly as I ought to speak.”
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Heb 4:12
“For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any
twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and
spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the
thoughts and intents of the heart.”
Heb 4:13-16
"13 Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight:
but all things [are] naked and opened unto the eyes of him with
whom we have to do. 14 Seeing then that we have a great high
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priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us
hold fast [our] profession. 15 For we have not an high priest which
cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all
points tempted like as [we are, yet] without sin. 16 Let us therefore
come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy,
and find grace to help in time of need."
We are to thank God for His Word.
That He has given it to us.
That it is alive.
That it is powerful.
That is designed with effectiveness (sharp and piercing)
That it discerns our thoughts and motives.
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Topical
After reading & meditating on the Text, ask yourself
What am I to--T - Thank God for
What am I to--
P - Praise God for
What am I to--A - Ask God for
(This is the "TAP the Text” method, i.e. "TAP" the Scripture for our
praying)
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Natural Order in Prayer
“I do not know a more natural order of things than this.
To begin with invocation, or calling upon God,
then to proceed to adore that God
whom we invoke because of his various glories, we are then
naturally led
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to confession, considering what little contemptible creatures we are
in the presence of a God to be so adored, and to humbling
ourselves because of our abounding sins and our many
necessities.
When we have given praise to a God of such holiness and have
spread our wants before him,
petitions for mercy naturally follow, and
our requests should be accompanied by pleading with such divine
arguments as the Spirit and Word of God put into our mouths.
Lastly we resign ourselves into the hands of God and express our
self-dedication to him.
Then we recall the mercies we have received, and out of gratitude
pay him our tribute of honor and thanks.
And as he is glorious in himself, and glorious in his works of power
and grace, so we bless him and ascribe everlasting glory to him.”
A Guide to Prayer, Isaac Watts, p 66
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Thanksgiving for God’s doings
Note the chronological development in the following.
Thanksgiving for what God has done.
Thanksgiving for what God is doing.
Thanksgiving for what God will do.
Thanksgiving for what God has not done.
Thanksgiving for what God is not doing.
Thanksgiving for what God will not do.
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Pray the names of God.
Yahweh Tsidkenu
The Lord who Sanctifies
Yahweh Shalom
The Lord who is our Peace
Yahweh Shamma
The Lord is there, henever leaves us
Yahweh Rophe
The Lord who heals
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Yahweh Jireh
The Lord who provides
Yahweh Nissi
The Lord my Banner
Yahweh Rohi
The Lord who is my Shepherd
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Who What Why
Who God is.
What He has done.
What He is going to do.
Why He does---for His Glory
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A.C.T.S.
Adore
Confess
Thanksgiving
Supplication
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Who, What, Why
Who God is.
What He has done.
What He is going to do.
Why He does---for His Glory
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What Should Be the Great Object of the Prayer-meeting?
1. First, it must be the glory of God, or else the petition is not
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sufficiently put up.
2. And then, in subservience to that, let us pray for a blessing on
the Church.
3. Then we should also pray for the conversion of the ungodly.
C.H. Spurgeon
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Chapter Seven: Quotes
Quotes to motivate to prayer.
or
Prayer provoking prayer quotes.
These are quotes that are designed to drive one thought deep into
the mind and heart of the believer concerning some aspect of
prayer. They can be used in the prayer meeting, in any
correspondence, church communications such as bulletins and
bulletin boards, letters, calendars, for personal encouragement, to
warm the soul for personal prayer, SS classes, quote when praying
before meals, prayer meetings in homes, church staff meetings,
publications, devotional times and devotional material, daily
planners etc.
Quotes concerning Corporate Prayer
A church is never more like the New Testament church than when it
is praying.
A congregation without a prayer meeting is essentially defective in
its organization, and so must be limited in its efficiency. The
Prayer Meeting and Its History, J. B. Johnston
A dynamic praying church must be built from the inside out,
employing all four levels of prayer: the secret closet, the family
altar, small group praying and finally, the congregational setting.
Developing your Secret Closet of Prayer, Richard Burr, p 19.
An ounce of believing prayer is worth a ton of edifying talk.
Cowan
John
A prayerless man is proud and independent, and any church that
neglects corporate prayer is sadly no better. Only God's humble
and needy children take the time to pray. Everyone else is just
going through the motions and naively trusting in their own
strength! –David Smithers
284
As prayer meetings fail in a congregation, so will the ministrations
of the pastor become unfruitful, the preaching of the word fail to
convert sinners and promote holiness in the professors of religion.
The Prayer Meeting and Its History, J. B. Johnston
At other times what divine impressions of holiness have you felt in
public worship in the congregation when this has been performed
with holy skill and fervency and prayer you have received more
solid edification than from the whole sermon? How dead have you
been to all sinful temptations, and how much devoted to God? Do
you not long to be able to pray in this way in your households and
in your own room?
A Guide to Prayer, Isaac Watts, 174
By importunity something else is meant than passionate dictation
and stormy pertinacity--imposing our egoist will on God, and
treating Him as a mysterious but manageable power that we may
coerce and exploit. The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
Even though we may not take part audibly in the action, yet if we
are there in a right spirit - there really to wait upon God, we
marvelously help the tone of a meeting. CHM
Far less of the disbelief in prayer is due to a scientific view of
nature's uniformity than to the slipshod kind of prayer that men hear
from us in public worship; it is often but journalese sent
heavenwards, or phrase-making to carry on. The Soul of Prayer,
P.T. Forsyth
Five young college students were spending a Sunday in London, so
they went to hear the famed C. H. Spurgeon preach. While waiting
for the doors to open, the students were greeted by a man who
asked, “Gentlemen, let me show you around. Would you like to see
the heating plant of this church?” They were not particularly
interested, for it was a hot day in July. But they didn’t want to offend
the stranger, so they consented. The young men were taken down
a stairway, a door was quietly opened, and their guide whispered,
“This is our heating plant.”
Surprised, the students saw 700 people bowed in prayer, seeking a
blessing on the service that was soon to begin in the auditorium
above. Softly closing the door, the gentleman then introduced
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himself. It was none other than Charles Spurgeon.
God has appointed prayer as his way of dispensing, and our way of
obtaining all promised good.
The Prayer Meeting and Its History, J. B. Johnston
History confirms the truth that wherever evangelical and vital
religion flourish, there lives the earnest gatherings for social prayer.
The Prayer Meeting and Its History, J. B. Johnston
If added power attends the united prayer of two or three, what
mighty triumphs there will be when hundreds of thousands of
consistent members of the Church are with one accord day by day
making intercession for the extension of Christ's Kingdom. – John
R. Mott
If one Jacob can prevail over the angel, then what could several
Jacobs accomplish?
If you want to see how popular the church is, attend Sunday
morning worship. If you want to see how popular the pastor is,
attend Sunday evening. if you want to see how popular God is,
attend the prayer meeting. Everything by Prayer Armin Gesswein
, Fred Hartley, page 123
If we pray among a select society of Christians, we draw near to
God with holy boldness, something like what we use in our duties of
secret worship. We have reason to take more freedom among
fellow saints and whose hearts have felt many of the same
workings as our own. A Guide to Prayer, Isaac Watts, p 58
I have often said it would be a thing very desirable and very likely to
be followed with a great blessing, if there could be some
contrivance, that there should be an agreement of all God’s people
in America, that are well affected to this work, to keep a Day of
Fasting and Prayer to God; wherein we should all unite on the
same day…Some perhaps may think its being all on the same day,
is a circumstance of no great consequence; but I can’t be of that
mind…It seems to me, it would mightily encourage and animate
God’s saints, in humbly and earnestly seeking God, for such
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blessings which concerns them all; and that it would be much for
the rejoicing of all, to think, that at the same time, such multitudes
of God’s dear children, far and near, were sending up their cries to
the same common Father, for the same motives. Jonathan
Edwards, 1742
In the prayer meeting, as nowhere else, are Christian graces thus
brought together with powerful reactionary and reflective force.
The Prayer Meeting and Its History, J. B. Johnston
Let methods be changed, therefore, if necessary, that prayer may
be given its true place. Let there be days set apart for intercession;
let the original purpose of the monthly concert of prayer for
missions be given a larger place; let missionary prayer cycles be
used by families and by individual Christians; let the best literature
on prayer be circulated among the members of the Church; let
special sermons on the Subject of intercession be preached. By
these and by all other practical means a larger, deeper, wider spirit
of prayer should be cultivated in the churches. – John R. Mott
Nothing is more calculated to begat a spirit of prayer than to unite in
social prayer with one who has the Spirit himself. Mighty Prevailing
Prayer, Wesley Duewel
Oh Christians, go more to the prayermeetings… – Brownlow North
Prayer is the proper work of the heart; yet in this present state, in
secret as well as in social prayer, the language of the lips is an
excellent aid in this part of worship. A Guide to Prayer, Isaac
Wattts, p 68
Prayer meetings are dead affairs when they are merely asking
sessions; there is adventure, hope and life when they are believing
sessions, and the faith is corporately, practically and deliberately
affirmed. Norman Grubb
Prayer meetings were the arteries of the early church. Through
them, life-sustaining power was derived.
Public praying is a pedagogical opportunity. A Call to Spiritual
287
Reformation, D. A. Carson
The condition of the church may be very accurately gauged by its
prayer meetings. So is the prayer meeting a grace-ometer, and
from it we may judge of the amount of divine working among a
people. If God be near a church, it must pray. And if He be not
there, one of die first tokens of His absence will be a slothfulness in
prayer! –Charles Haddon Spurgeon Everything by Prayer, Fred
Hartley, page 120
The disappearance of the 'prayer meeting' from the life of many
churches is something which occasions widespread regret, even
among many who would not normally attend. Indeed, the prayer
meeting in which the laity participated freely is a legacy from the
1859 (Ulster) Revival...These prayer meetings were not in many
cases in existence before the revival set in. The very establishment
of them in the first instance, was an evidence that it was springtime
again in the Church of Christ, and the restoration of them today
would be for her reviving once more. John T. Carson
The New Testament prayer meeting reveals the master plan of
Jesus. The last thing Jesus did on earth was to build that prayer
meeting, and it is the only thing He left behind on planet Earth when
He ascended to heaven. Everything by Prayer, Fred Hartley, page
13
The power of the Church truly to bless rests on intercession--asking
and receiving heavenly gifts to carry to men. Power Through
Prayer, E. M. Bounds
The prayer meeting answers to this demand of the spiritual
brotherhood, with more exclusiveness and direct fitness than any
other ordinance of religious worship. The Prayer Meeting and Its
History, J. B. Johnston
There is a power in conferring and covenanting, on the part of
kindred spirits, to come before God, and plead together some
special promise. The Prayer Meeting and Its History, J. B.
Johnston
288
The prayer meeting is a divine ordinance, founded in man’s social
nature. The Prayer Meeting and Its History, J. B. Johnston
The prayer meeting is a special means of developing and
cultivating Christian graces, and of promoting individual and social
edification. The Prayer Meeting and Its History, J. B. Johnston
The prayer meeting is the pulse of the church. The Prayer Meeting
and Its History, J. B. Johnston
The prayer meeting is the rallying point where the power of faith in
the church concentrates, and takes hold on the arm that moves the
world. The Prayer Meeting and Its History, J. B. Johnston
The public prayer of the Church, as the company of grace, is the
saved soul returning to God that gave it; it is the sinner coming to
the Saviour, or the ransomed of the Lord returning to Zion; it is the
sanctified with the sanctifier; it is not primarily the child talking to the
Father--though that note may prevail in more private prayers. We
are more than stray sheep reclaimed. We are those whose defiant
iniquity has lain upon Christ for us all.
The Soul of Prayer, P.T.
Forsyth
The simple fact is, we are too vague and, as a consequence, too
indifferent in our prayers and prayer meetings. We do not seem like
people asking for what they want, and waiting for what they ask.
This is what destroys our prayer meetings, rendering them pithless,
pointless, powerless; turning them into teaching or talking
meetings, rather than deep-toned, earnest prayer meetings.
CHM
The spirit of prayer, and the love and practice of the prayer
meeting, will so give organic strength to the church as to make her
terrible as an army with banners. The Prayer Meeting and Its
History, J. B. Johnston
The true man of God is heartsick, grieved at the worldliness of the
Church...grieved at the toleration of sin in the Church, grieved at
the prayerlessness in the Church. He is disturbed that the corporate
prayer of the Church no longer pulls down the strongholds of the
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devil. Leonard Ravenhill
This much is sure in all churches, forgetting party labels; the
smallest meeting numerically is the prayer meeting. If weak in
prayer we are weak everywhere. Leonard Ravenhill
Using Acts 1:4 as his basis, Armin Gesswein often called the
central all-church prayer meeting “Christ’s last command; our first
responsibility.” Everything by Prayer, Fred Hartley, page 16
We have far too little conception of the place that intercession, as
distinguished from prayer for ourselves, ought to have in the
Church and the Christian life. The Ministry of Intercession, Andrew
Murray, p 5
We must never get away I from the fact that when Jesus built His
Church He built a prayer meeting. Armin Gesswein Everything by
Prayer, Fred Hartley
What the Church needs today is not more or better machinery, not
new organizations or more and novel methods, but men whom the
Holy Ghost can use – men of prayer.
When Christ ascended into heaven all He left behind was a prayer
meeting. The early Church didn’t have a prayer meeting; the early
Church was the prayer meeting. In fact, in the early Church every
Christian was a prayer-meeting Christian. –Armin Gesswein
Everything by Prayer, Fred Hartley, page 12
When you join with others in prayer and you are not the speaker, let
your heart be kept intent and watchful to the work, that you may
pray so much the better when you are the mouth of others to God. A Guide to Prayer Isaac
Let us pray then, that when God has prepared our heart for
worship, he would also teach our tongue to answer the thoughts
and desires of the heart and to express them in words suitable and
answering to all our inward spiritual feelings. A fitting variety of
expression, and holy oratory prayer, is one of these good and
perfect gifts that come from above, from God, the Father of lights
and Knowledge. James 1:17
A Guide to Prayer Isaac Watts, p
290
75
Focusing on the personal prayer life only would be equivalent to
trying to fly a plane on one wing. John Franklin
Constance Garrett asserts, “our growth in grace and power
depends largely upon our individual, personal prayer life. Yet public
worship" is “nonetheless important and necessary." Quoted by
John Franklin from Growth in Prayer, Constance Garrett, p 115
On the other hand, George Buttrick answers a rhetorical question.
“Can't a man pray without belonging to a church?" by declaring, “He
cannot pray well or fully until he is a member of some fellowship of
prayer." George Buttrick, Prayer, 283
J. Edwin Orr makes no bones where he stands, ‘No great spiritual
awakening has begun anywhere in the world apart from united
prayer.’ J. Edwin Orr, Prayer, Its Deeper Dimensions p. 21.
Every converted sinner is a soul revived to prayer. Every saint
restored from backsliding, is a soul returned to the life and power of
prayer. Every congregation enjoying an outpouring of the Spirit, is a
congregation revived and alive to the prayer meeting. The Prayer
Meeting and Its History, J. B. Johnston
Do our churches that have a prayer meeting have a weekly prayer
meeting or a weakly prayer meeting.
Some churches suffer much from extempore prayer, but perhaps
those suffer more that exclude it. It at least gives a public
consecration to prayer private and personal, which prayer, from the
nature of it, must be extempore and "occasional." The bane of
extempore prayer is that it is confused with prayer unprepared; and
the greatest preparation for prayer is to pray. The Soul of Prayer,
P.T. Forsyth
What we cannot obtain by solitary prayer we may by
social...because where our individual strength fails, there union and
concord are effectual. Chrysostom 400 AD
291
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The Corporate Prayer
We cry out to you O God
Your children of Grace
We ask for your forgiveness
For our pride and lack of faith
We cry out for Your mercy
In this uncertain time
Hoping beyond all hope
For your justice divine
We pray for your protection
If even for the sake of a few
We want to humble ourselves
And look only to you
You who bring us hope
You who ease our fear
You who set the heavens
We cry out for you to draw near
Set your hedge of protection on us
Shield us with your love
Help us to see your wisdom
Send us high on the wings of the dove
Bring us closer to You
And ever closer still
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We want You to bless us
According to Your will
By Romona Barrett
Wellspring: A Journal of Christian Poetry
Quotes concerning Prayer in General
A bishop in the Church of England, Andrewes served as royal
chaplain to Queen Elizabeth I and later to Kings James I and
Charles I. He was fluent in 15 languages, and when the Hampton
Court Conference convened in 1604, he was chosen as one of the
translators of the proposed new English Bible. When the King
James Version was published in 1611, his contribution could be
seen in the Pentateuch and the historical books. “Lord, I renounce
my desire for human praise, for the approval of my peers, the need
for public recognition. I deliberately put these aside today, content
to hear you whisper, “Well done, my faithful servant.” Amen
A great part of my time is spent in getting my heart in tune for
prayer. Robert Murray McCheyne
Ah, prayer turns trembling saints into great victors! There is no such
thing as surrender, or even discouragement, to a man who dwells
in the secret place of the Most High and abides under the shadow
of the Almighty. Henry W. Frost
A prayerless soul is a Christless soul.
A poor blanched thing may be produced in a dark cellar; and so
may you maintain a poor, blanched miserable existence, if you live
absent from your God, and apart from that strength which faith can
give you, but you can never attain the healthy verdure of grace.
A graceless man will be a prayerless man. The Prayer Meeting
and Its History, J. B. Johnston
293
All religion is founded on prayer, and in prayer it has its test and
measure. The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
And him that prayed before but pray the more. As appetite comes
with eating, so prayer with praying. Our hearts learn the language
of the lips. The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
A man's influence in the world can be gauged not by his eloquence,
or his zeal, or his orthodox, or his energy, but by his prayers. The
Kneeling Christian
A man of prevailing prayer must be filled with the Spirit of God.
The Kneeling Christian
A child of God ought to expect answers to prayer.
A season of silence is the best preparation for speech with God.
The Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick, page 65
Ah, my brethren, we little know how many of our prayers are an
abomination to the Lord. C. H. Spurgeon
All good is born in prayer, and all good springs from it.
Spurgeon
C. H.
All fruitfulness in service is the outcome of prayer -- of the worker's
prayers, or of those who are holding up holy hands on his behalf.
All progress in prayer is an answer to prayer--our own or another's.
The Soul of Prayer, by P. T. Forsyth
All religion is founded on prayer, and in prayer it has its test and
measure. The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
All things whatsoever ye pray and ask for, believe that ye have
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received them [that is, in heaven], and ye shall have them [on
earth] Mark 11: 24
All in God draws me; everything within and around drives me to the
throne of grace. The Hidden Life, Adolph Saphir
All practical power over sin and over men depends on maintaining
closet communion. Those who abide in the secret place with God
show themselves mighty to conquer evil, and strong to work and to
war for God. They are seers who read His secrets; they know His
will; they are the meek whom He guides in judgment and teaches
His way. They are His prophets who speak for Him to others, and
even forecast things to come. They watch the signs of the times
and discern His tokens and read His signals. A. T. Pierson
All real growth in the spiritual life- all victory over temptation, all
confidence and peace in the presence of difficulties and dangers,
all repose of spirit in times of great disappointment or loss, all
habitual communion with God-depend upon the practice of secret
prayer.
The Kneeling Christian
All the evil influences which seek to prevent our approach to God
do not deserve to be compared with the attractive power of God.
The Hidden Life, Adolph Saphir
All true prayer is exercised in the sphere of the Holy Spirit,
motivated and empowered by Him. Eph 6:18
All you need to do to learn to pray is to pray.
Prayer, Wesley Duewel
Mighty Prevailing
And all true prayer promotes its own progress and increases our
power to pray.
The Soul of Prayer, by P. T. Forsyth
All of us would be wiser if we would resolve never to put people
down, except on our prayer lists. A Call to Spiritual Reformation,
D.A. Carson
Although God certainly knows all our needs, praying for them
295
changes our attitude from complaint to praise and enables us to
participate in God’s personal plan for our lives.
Ray Stedman
And many shall think they are praying to the Father in my name,
whilst deceiving themselves. The Kneeling Christian
An uneducated but disciplined believer may have a greater prayer
life than a theologian who thinks and talks a lot about prayer.
And pray in the Spirit on all occasions. Eph 6:18
And surely it should be enough to restrain all 'lightness' and
constrain an unceasing 'earnestness' did we apprehend the
‘”greatness of the Being’” before whom we plead. C. H. Spurgeon
Andrew Bonar defined fasting as abstaining from anything that
hindered prayer.
Anything is a blessing which makes us pray. C. H. Spurgeon
Apostasy generally begins at the closet door.
E M Bounds
As appetite comes with eating, so prayer with praying. Our hearts
learn the language of the lips. The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
As impossible as it is for us to take a breath in the morning large
enough to last us until noon, so impossible is it to pray in the
morning in such a way as to last us until noon.
Prayer, O. Hallesby, p 146
As well could you expect a plant to grow without air and water as to
expect your heart to grow without prayer and faith.
As we lift up our soul in prayer to the living God, we gain the beauty
of holiness as surely as a flower becomes beautiful by living in the
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sunlight.
The Kneeling Christian
As a painted man is no man, and as a painted fire is no fire, so a
cold prayer is no prayer.
Thomas Brooks
Ask of Me -- I will give, says an almighty, all-loving God, and we
scarcely heed His words!
Ask the Lord of the harvest to send workers into His harvest.
9:38
Mat
Asking with shameless persistence, the importunity that will not be
denied, returns with the answer in hand.
Bestow upon me, O Lord my God, understanding to know thee,
diligence to seek thee, wisdom to find thee, and a faithfulness that
may finally embrace thee. - Thomas Aquinas
Believing prayer from a wholly-cleansed heart never fails.
Kneeling Christian
The
Both Scripture and experience unite to indicate that there is
cumulative power in unified praying.
But it is the Holy Spirit of God Who is prayer’s great Helper.
Kneeling Christian
But if one neglects his closet, then all evil comes of it.
Spurgeon
The
C. H.
But the root of the difficulty of public prayer lies further back than in
the matter of style. It lies in the difficulty of private prayer, in its
spiritual poverty, its inertia, its anemia.
The Soul of Prayer, P.T.
Forsyth
But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thine inner chamber..
6:6
297
Mt
By importunity something else is meant than passionate dictation
and stormy pertinacity--imposing our egoist will on God, and
treating Him as a mysterious but manageable power that we may
coerce and exploit. The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
Can we pray in earnest if we do not in the act commit ourselves to
do our best to bring about the answer? Can we escape some king
of hypocrisy? This is especially so with intercession. The Soul of
Prayer The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
Charles Finney, after spending a day in the woods in prayer and
fasting, preached that night in a phenomenally irreligious
congregation. The sermon was accompanied by such divine power
that the whole congregation, except one man, fell prostrate upon
the floor, and voiced their agony under conviction of sin, in such
loud outcries that the preacher was forced to stop.
Christians pray as they feel; and in prayer they feel themselves in
the presence of God, the Hearer of prayer, and the Searcher of
hearts. The Prayer Meeting and Its History, J. B. Johnston
Christ went more readily ad crucem (to the cross), than we do to
the throne of grace. - Thomas Watson
Closet communion needs time for the revelation of God’s presence.
It is vain to say, ‘I have too much work to do to find time.’ You must
find time or forfeit blessing. God knows how to save for you the
time you sacredly keep for communion with Him. – A. T. Pierson
Cold prayers always freeze before they reach heaven. Thomas
Brooks
Cold prayers ask for a denial!
C. H. Spurgeon
Communion is deeper than theology. The Path of Prayer, Samuel
Chadwick, page 65
298
Communion with God is essential before we can have real
communion with our fellow-man. The Kneeling Christian
Count It Done
A father wrote to his son,
Who was faraway from home;
“I have sent you a beautiful gift,
It may be delayed, but ‘twill come;
It is what you have wanted most,
And have asked for many days;”
And before the child received the gift
He voiced his thanks and praise.
Our Father saith unto us:
“Your need shall be supplied;
Ask and receive that your joy be filled,
And My joy in you abide.”
Shall we wait to thank till we see
The answer to every prayer?
Forbear to praise till we feel
The lifted pressure of care?
Nay, let us trust His word
And know that the thing is done,
For His promise is just as sure
As a father’s to his son.
- Annie Johnson Flint
V. Raymond Edman, But God!, (Zondervan Publishing House,
Grand Rapids; 1962), p. 53
Criticism of prayer dissolves in the experience of it. When the soul
is at close quarters with God it becomes enlarged enough to hold
together in harmony things that oppose, and to have room for
harmonious contraries. The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
Depend upon it, if you are bent on prayer, the devil will not leave
you alone. He will molest you, tantalize you, block you, and will
surely find some hindrances, big or little or both. And we sometimes
fail because we are ignorant of his devices…I do not think he minds
our praying about things if we leave it at that. What he minds, and
opposes steadily, is the prayer that prays on until it is prayed
through, assured of the answer. Mary Warburton Booth
299
Do believers or unbelievers ever say of us, “We know your prayers
are answered”? The Kneeling Christian
Do I really believe that prayer is a power?
Do not have your concert first, and then tune your instrument
afterwards. Begin the day with the Word of God and prayer, and get
first of all into harmony with Him. James Hudson Taylor Do not be
so timid about praying wrongly if you pray humbly. The Soul of
Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
Do not pray for easy lives, pray to be stronger men and women. Do
not pray for tasks equal to your powers. Pray for powers equal to
your tasks. - Phillips Brooks
Do the angels veil their faces before You, and shall I be content to
prattle through a form with no soul and no heart? C. H. Spurgeon
Do you imagine that you shall ever go far along in the heavenly
pilgrimage if you neglect prayer?
Does prayer indeed "move the Hand that moves the world"?
Doubtful prayer is no prayer at all. John Calvin
Draw nigh to God, so that you may dread the grave as little as your
bed.
Draw nigh to God, that you may live a happy and useful life.
Drawing nigh to God is the most concentrated energy of the soul.
Effective prayer is the fruit of a relationship with God, not a
technique for acquiring blessings. A Call to Spiritual Refromation,
D.A. Carson
300
Either we pray or we faint.
Ray Stedman
Eloquence and ardour have not done so much for Christ's cause as
the humble virtues, the united activity, and the patient prayers of
thousands of faithful people whose names are quite unknown. The
Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
Even pagan savages cry out to someone or something to aid them
in times of danger and disaster and distress. How much more
should we that know the true God.
Every prayerless day is a statement by a helpless individual, “I do
not need God today.”
The Arena of Prayer, Ben Jennings
Every unanswered prayer is a clarion call to search the heart to see
what is wrong there; for the promise is unmistakable in its
clearness: "If ye shall ask anything in My name, that will I do" John
14:14
Failing to pray reflects idolatry–a trust in substitutes for God.
The Arena of Prayer, Ben Jennings
Fervency of Spirit
It is not the arithmetic of our prayers, how many they are;
nor the rhetoric of our prayers, how eloquent they are;
nor the geometry of our prayers, how long they be;
nor the music of our prayers, how sweet our voice may be;
nor the logic of our prayers, now argumentative they may be;
nor the method of our prayers, how orderly they may be—which
God cares for.
Fervency of spirit is that which availeth much.
William Law, in J. S. Baxter, Explore the Book, p. 236
301
For more than half a century, I have never known one day when I
had not more business than I could get through. For 40 years, I
have had annually about 30,000 letters, and most of these have
passed through my own hands. I have nine assistants always at
work corresponding in German, French, English, Danish, Italian,
Russian, and other languages. Then, as pastor of a church with
1200 believers, great has been my care. I have had charge of five
orphanages; also at my publishing depot, the printing and
circulation of millions of tracts, books, and Bibles. But I have always
made it a rule never to begin work till I have had a good season
with God. - George Mueller
For more than Thirty-five years. I have had much intercourse with
dying saints and sinners of various ages and conditions. In all that
time I have not heard one express regret that he had spent too
much time in prayer; I have heard many mourn that they had so
seldom visited a throne of grace.
Wm. S. Plumer in The Power of Prayer, by Samuel Prime, p 244
For the most part our repetitions are evidence not of the fervency,
but of the barrenness of our minds and the slightness of our frame.”
A Guide to Prayer, Isaac Watts, p 60 “Be not rash to utter anything
before God: for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth: therefore let
thy words be few. Eccles. 5:2.
From the day of Pentecost, there has been not one great spiritual
awakening in any land which has not begun in a union of prayer,
though only among two or three. And no such outward, upward
movement has continued after such prayer meetings have
declined. It is in exact proportion to the maintenance of such joint
and believing supplication and intercession that the Word of the
Lord in any land or locality has had free course and been glorified.
A. T. Pierson
Give me Scotland or I die.
John Knox
God always does His new things in the same old way. Everything
by Prayer, Fred Hartley, page 5
God bestows His Holy Spirit in His fullness only on men of prayer.
302
God has left many things dependent upon man’s thinking and
working, why should He not leave some things dependent upon
man’s praying? The Kneeling Christian
God likes to see His people shut up to this, that there is no hope
but in prayer. Herein lies the Church’s power against the world. –
Andrew Bonar, 1853
God never intended for us to be left to pray on our own.
God never changes His purpose, but He often does purpose a
change. John Owen
God has made gravity a law in one realm, he has made prayer a
law in a higher realm, and it is even greater folly to ignore the latter
than the former.
(Prayer and its Remarkable Answers, William
Patton p 56)
God hates insincerity or lukewarmness in prayer. Rev 3:15-16
God delays in answering our prayers because men would pluck
their mercies green; God would have them ripe.
God knew that Paul would be a better man with the “thorn” than
without it.
God desires to glorify His name by answering prayer.
God does not bestow His gifts on the casual of hasty comers and
goers. Much with God alone is the secret of knowing Him and of
influence with Him. E. M. Bounds
God is greater than His promises, and often gives more than either
we desire or deserve -- but He does not always do so. The
Kneeling Christian
303
God delights to answer prayer; and He has given us His word that
He will answer.
God has no greater controversy with His people today than this,
that with boundless promises to believing prayer, there are so few
who actually give themselves unto intercession. A. T. Pierson
God’s child can conquer anything by prayer. Is it any wonder that
Satan does his utmost to snatch that weapon from the Christian or
to hinder him in the use of it? - Andrew Murray
God’s greatest movements in this world have been conditioned on,
continued and fashioned by prayer. God has put Himself in these
great movements just as men have prayer. Persistent, prevailing,
conspicuous and mastering prayer has always brought God to
present. How vast are the possibilities of prayer! How wide its
reach! It lays its hand on Almighty God and moves Him to do what
He would not do if prayer was not offered. Prayer is a wonderful
power placed by Almighty God in the hands of His saints, which
may be used to accomplish great purposes and to achieve unusual
results. The only limits to prayer are the promises of God and His
ability to fulfill those promises. - E. M. Bounds
God wills that men should pray everywhere, but the place of His
glory is in the solitudes, where He hides us in the cleft of the rock,
and talks with man face to face as a man talks with his friend. The
Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick, page 35
God’s acquaintance is not made hurriedly.
E. M. Bounds
Go into your chamber, shut the door, and cultivate the habit of
praying audibly. Write prayers and burn them. Formulate your soul.
Pay no attention to literary form, only to spiritual reality. Read a
passage of Scripture and then sit down and turn it into prayer,
written or spoken. Learn to be particular, specific, and detailed in
your prayer so long as you are not trivial. General prayers, literary
prayers, and stately phrases are, for private prayer, traps and sops
to the soul. To formulate your soul is one valuable means to escape
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formalizing it. This is the best, the wholesome, kind of selfexamination. Speaking with God discovers us safely to ourselves
We "find" ourselves, come to ourselves, in the Spirit. The Soul of
Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
Good praying is more easily caught than taught. A Call to Spiritual
Reformation, D. A. Carson
Good when He gives, supremely good;
Nor less when he denies:
Afflictions from His sovereign hand,
Are blessings in disguise.
Grace and glory flow from Thee; Shower, O shower them, Lord, on
me.
Great pray-ers have always been great students of the Word of
God.
Has not that which is heaven’s greatest boon to man (prayer),
become to us a dry dead duty? C. H. Spurgeon
Have you advanced far enough in the Christian life to believe Him;
that is, to believe what He says and all He says?
The Kneeling
Christian
Have you noticed how much praying for revival has been going on
of late and how little revival has resulted? I believe the problem is
that we have been trying to substitute praying for obeying, and it
simply will not work. To pray for revival while ignoring the plain
precept laid down in Scripture is to waste a lot of words and get
nothing for our trouble. Prayer will become effective when we stop
using it as a substitute for obedience. A. W. Tozer
Have you only repeated many a “form of prayer”, while the
breathing desire, the living words, have not come from your lips?
C. H. Spurgeon
Have you, when in prayer, ever had the witness borne in upon you
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that your request was granted?
The Kneeling Christian
He can do all things who prays well. All soulwinners have
conquered on their knees. Wherever the secret of prevailing prayer
is found, something supernatural will come to pass. G. F. Oliver
He is the Giver not only of the answer, but first of the prayer itself.
The Soul of Prayer, by P. T. Forsyth
He manifests Himself to those who pray in secret as He cannot to
those who have no inner sanctuary of the soul. The Path of Prayer,
Samuel Chadwick, page 79
He that lives without prayer or prays without life, has not the Spirit
of God.
John Mason (1646-1694)
He who does not pray when the sun shines knows not how to pray
when the clouds arise. How Can God Answer Prayer?, William
Edward Biederwolf, p 21
He who prays is nearer Christ than even the apostles were,
certainly than the apostles before the Cross and Resurrection.
The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
He who prays in private is a real Christian.
He who has learned to pray has learned the greatest secret of a
holy and a happy life. --William Law
He who will not pray until, on good grounds, he is sure that he has
all right affections and graces, will go to hell before his prayer
begins. The Power of Prayer, Samuel Prime p 259
He has mastered but little of prayer who knows little of the Spiritgroaning which cannot be uttered. The Greatest Force on Earth,
Payne
306
Helplessness is the real secret and the impelling power of prayer.
Prayer, O. Hallesby
He that hears without ears understands us without our words. Yet
as language is of absolute necessity in social prayer, that others
may join with us in our addresses to God, so for the most part we
find it necessary in secret, too, for there are few persons of so
steady and fixed a power of meditation as to maintain warm
devotion and to converse with God, or with themselves profitably,
without words. A Guide to Prayer, Isaac Watts, p 69
He who prays most prays best.
He works so naturally and so sweetly with our own spirits that we
cannot with certainty distinguish his working by any fervour or
strength of impression. His working is best known by the favour
and relish of divine things that we feel in our souls, and the
consequent fruits of sanctification in our hearts and lives. A Guide
to Prayer, Isaac Watts, p 149
His Holy Spirit puts fresh ideas into the minds of praying people.
The Kneeling Christian
Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.
17:21
Mt
How dare we work for Christ without being much on our knees?
The Kneeling Christian
How many years of our short life are spent to learn the Greek, Latin
and French tongues, that we may communicate among the living
nations or understand the writings of the dead? Shall not the
language in which we converse with heaven and the living God be
thought worth equal pains? How laboriously do some persons study
the art of conversation, that they may accepted in all company and
share in the favour of men? Is not the same care due to seek all
methods of acceptance with God, that we may approve ourselves
in this presence? What a high value is set upon human oratory or
the art of persuasion, by which we are equipped to debate and ail
with our fellow creatures? This art of divine oratory which teaches
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us to utter our inward utterings of soul, and plead and prevail with
our Creator through the asssitance of the Holy Spirit and mediation
of our Lord Jesus – is it of no esteem with us? A Guide to Prayer,
Isaac Watts, 171
How many periods of five, ten, or fifteen minutes that could be
devoted to prayer do we waste or leave unemployed in the course
of a day” Prayer Power Unlimited, J. Oswald Sanders
How often has very earnest prayer for the fullness of the Holy
Ghost been in vain, because he who sought that unspeakable
blessing sought it rather for the glory which the possession of it, or
the reputation for the possession of it, might bring to man, than for
the honor and praise that might be brought to God. G. H. C.
Macgregor
How terrible is the cost of robbing God of time for prayer. When we
rob God of time for quiet, we are robbing Him of ourselves. It is only
in the quiet that we can really know Him and know ourselves, and
be sure that we give ourselves back to Him. Oh, for God's sake, do
not risk keeping the windows of Heaven closed by robbing God of
time. (Keswick 1946 ) – Gordon M. Guinness
Hurried prayers and muttered Litanies can never produce souls
mighty in prayer. Samuel Chadwick
I am convinced that when a Christian rightly prays the Lord’s
prayer...His praying is more than adequate. Martin Luther
I will cry to God Most High, To God who accomplishes all things for
me. Ps 57:2
I should as soon expect life in a dead man as spiritual life in a
prayerless soul! The Kneeling Christian
I had rather stand against the cannons of the wicked than against
the prayers of the righteous. Thomas Lye
If God gave His Son unasked, how much more will He give His
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Holy Spirit to them that ask it! But let us not prescribe the form in
which He comes. The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
If I could hear Christ praying for me in the next room, I would not
fear a million enemies. Yet distance makes no difference. He is
praying for me! Robert Murray McCheyne (1813-1843), pioneer
missionary to America
If it be true that the whole Trinity is in the gospel of our salvation, it
is also true that all theology lies hidden in the prayer which is our
chief answer to the gospel. The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
If prayer is the greatest achievement on earth, we may be sure
it,will call for a discipline that corresponds to its power. The Path of
Prayer, Samuel Chadwick. page 27
I find it a good thing to fast. I do not lay down rules for anyone in
this matter, but I know it has been a good thing for me to go without
meals to get time for prayer. So many say they have not sufficient
time to pray. We think nothing of spending an hour or two in taking
our meals. D. E. Hoste
If sinners be dammed, at least let them leap to Hell over our bodies.
If they will perish, let them perish with our arms about their knees.
Let no one GO there UNWARNED and UNPRAYED for. Charles
Spurgeon
If the Holy Spirit doesn’t do it, there’s nothing to it. Everything by
Prayer, Fred Hartley, page 5
I had rather stand against the cannons of the wicked than against
the prayers of the righteous. - Thomas Lye
I have been benefited by praying for others; for by making an
errand to God for them I have gotten something for myself. Samuel Rutherford
I have studied the Bible an history with extreme care, and wherever
I have found a man of power I have found a man of prayer." J.C.
309
Ryle
In general we must hold that whenever any religious controversy
arises, which either a council or ecclesiastical tribunal behooves to
decide; whenever a minister is to be chosen; whenever, in short
any matter of difficulty and great importance is under consideration:
on the other hand, when manifestations of the divine anger appear,
as pestilence, war, and famine, the sacred and salutary custom of
all ages has been for pastors to exhort the people to public fasting
and extraordinary prayer. Calvin, Institutes, IV, 12, 14
In our prayer God returns from His projection in Nature to speak
with Himself. When we speak to God it is really the God who lives
in us speaking through us to Himself. His Spirit returns to Him who
gave it; and returns not void, but bearing our souls with Him The
Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
In the book of Acts they are praying in every chapter except two;
and in those chapters they are in trouble. –Armin Gesswein
Everything by Prayer, Fred Hartley, page 25
In these days there is no time to pray; but without time, and a lot of
it, we shall never learn to pray. It ought to possible to give God one
hour out of twenty-four all to Himself. The Path of Prayer, Samuel
Chadwick page 24
Is there any proof that a man is a man of God like the fact that he is
a man of prayer? Of Elijah it is said that he “prayed in his prayer”
James 5: 17, A.V. The Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick, page 17
It is as miraculous as it is real that the holy and the guilty should
live together in such habitual communion as the life of prayer. The
Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
It’s been stated these days, “They just don’t make missionaries like
William Carey.” Carey changed the history of missions and the face
of India 200 years ago. Few know of Carey’s sister, paralyzed and
bedridden for 50 years. Although unable to speak for much of that
period, with great effort she allowed herself to be propped up in
bed. She wrote long encouraging letters to her brother. And she
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prayed for him several hours per day for 50 years!
It is reasonable that God should withhold a blessing, until we feel
our need of it sufficiently. Prayer and its Remarkable Answers,
William Patton p 73
It is the man that most really has God that most really seeks God.
The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
It is the Spirit that keeps us praying for the Spirit, as it is grace that
keeps us in grace. The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
It is truer to say that we live the Christian life in order to pray than
that we pray in order to live the Christian life.
The Soul of
Prayer, by P. T. Forsyth
It takes us long to learn that prayer is more important than
organization, more powerful than armies, more influential than
wealth, and mightier than all learning. The Path of Prayer, Samuel
Chadwick, page 81
It was your Lord who put an end to long-windedness, so that you
would not pray as if you wanted to teach God by your many words.
Piety, not verbosity, is in order when you pray, since He knows your
needs. Now someone perhaps will say: ‘But if He knows our needs,
why should we state our requests even in a few words? Why
should we pray at all? Since He knows, let Him give what He
deems necessary for us.’ Even so, He wants you to pray so that He
may confer His gifts on one who really desires them and will not
regard them lightly. - Augustine
It would revolutionize the lives of most men if they were shut in with
God in some secret place for half an hour a day. The Path of
Prayer, Samuel Chadwick, page 29
I used to ask God to help me. Then I asked if I might help Him. I
ended up by asking Him to do His work through me. Hudson
Taylor
311
I never prayed sincerely and earnestly for anything but it came at
some time--no matter at how distant a day, somehow, in some
shape, probably the last I would have devised, it came.
Adoniram Judson
I will not let thee go, except thou bless me.
Jacob
If God wants us to pray without ceasing, it is because He wants to
answer without ceasing! Armin Gesswein Everything by Prayer,
Fred Hartley, page 137
If history be true, God’s great men were all men of prayer.
How Can God Answer Prayer?, William Edward Biederwolf, p 22
? If it is a fact that I must pray, and shall pray when “cornered” by
circumstances, then the better I pray the better for me--let me
master the practice while there is leisure and time, remembering
that here as elsewhere only practice makes perfect.
The
Practice of Prayer, Albert D.Belden, p 14
? If it be true that He “waits top be gracious” then is it not sheer
insanity to make no “trial of His love”
The Practice of Prayer, Albert D.Belden, p 14
If the life is not one of self-denial--of fasting--that is, letting the world
go; of prayer--that is, laying hold of God then prayer is neither
spiritual or profitable.
If pain afflict, or wrongs oppress,
If cares distract, or fears dismay,
If guilt deject, or sin distress,
The remedy’s before you: Pray
Joseph Hart
If our prayers are not answered -- always answered, but not
necessarily granted -- the fault must be entirely in ourselves, and
not in God. The Kneeling Christian
312
If we would do much for God, we must ask much of God: we must
be men of prayer. Payson
If frequent prayer, and, at times, long hours of prayer, were
necessary for our Savior, are they less necessary for us? The
Kneeling Christian
If my people...will...then will I.
2 Chron 7:14
If we really loved our blessed Savior, should we not oftener seek
communion with Him in prayer?
The Kneeling Christian
If the Spirit prays in us, shall we not share His “groanings” in
prayer? The Kneeling Christian
If there were no devil there would be no difficulty in prayer, but it is
the evil one’s chief aim to make prayer impossible. The Kneeling
Christian
If Christ is dwelling in our hearts by faith: if the Holy Spirit is
breathing into us our petitions, and we are “praying in the Holy
Ghost,” ought we not to know that the Father “hears” us? Jude 20
If prayer cannot influence the course of world events then Paul’s
exhortation in 1 Tim 2:1-3 was and is pointless.
If we ask anything, according to His will, He hears us.
I John 5:14
If theology is the queen of the sciences; then prayer is the queen of
the experiences.
I have seen many men work without praying, though I have never
seen any good come out of it; but I have never seen a man pray
without working. James Hudson Taylor
313
Ignorance and helplessness in prayer are indeed blessed things if
they cast us upon the Holy Spirit.
The Kneeling Christian
Importunate perseverance is a pre-requisite to success in prayer,
because it has an intimate connection with the preparation of a right
spiritual condition in us. Prayer and its Remarkable Answers,
William Patton p 82
Importunity is one of the instructors in God’s training school for
Christian culture.
W.E. Biederwolf
In the midst of toppling thrones, Daniel maintained his serenity
because he knew there was a sovereign God in heaven to whom
he prayed.
In my name (John 14:13,14; 15:16; 16: 23, 24, 26). Evidently
something very important is here implied. It is more than a condition
-- it is also a promise, an encouragement, for our Lord’s biddings
are always His enablings. - -The Kneeling Christian
In very love refuse -Whate’er Thou seest-Our weakness would
abuse.
In all states of dilemma or of difficulty, prayer is an available source.
The ship of prayer may sail through all temptations, doubts and
fears, straight up to the throne of God; and though she may be
outward bound with only griefs, and groans, and sighs, she shall
return freighted with a wealth of blessings! C. H. Spurgeon
Incense can neither smell not ascend without fire; no more does
prayer unless it arises from spiritual warmth and fervency. Acker
Influence at the court of heaven depends not upon birth, or
brilliancy, or achievement, but upon humble and utter dependence
upon the Son of the King. The Kneeling Christian
In intercession our King upon the throne finds His highest glory; in it
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we shall find our highest glory too. The Ministry of Intercession,
Andrew Murray, p 5.
In prayer the Church has received power to rule the world. The
Church is always the little flock. But if it would stand together on its
knees, it would dominate world politics--from the prayer room.
Prayer, O. Hallesby, p 158
In prayer it is better to have a heart without words than words
without a heart. John Bunyan
Intercession is the noblest work God entrusts to us humans. T.W.
Hunt
In the fine and difficult art of prayer, intercession is undoubtedly the
most difficult of accomplishment. As far as my understanding of
these things goes, intercessory prayer is the finest and most
exacting kind of work that it is possible for men to perform.
Prayer, O. Hallesby, p 164
Is his Holy Spirit promised to teach us to pray; and shall a Christian
be careless or unwilling to receive such divine teaching?
A Guide to Prayer, Isaac Watts, 172
Is not the lack of urgent desire, rather than the lack of adequate
time, at the root of our meager praying? Prayer Power Unlimited,
J. Oswald Sanders
Is not God, the Giver, more than all His gifts?
It is when we have failed and know not “what prayers to offer” or “in
what way,” that the Holy Spirit is promised as our Helper. The
Kneeling Christian
It is no more true that God is a Creator of worlds, than it is that he is
a Hearer of Prayer.
(Prayer and its Remarkable Answers, William Patton p 56)
315
It is not enough to begin to pray, nor to pray aright; nor is it enough
to continue for a time to pray; but we must pray patiently, believing,
continue in prayer until we obtain an answer. George Mueller
Is it not true that the folk who are most oppressed by the “problems”
of prayer are the people who have least “praying” experience?
The Practice of Prayer,
It is atheism to pray and not wait on hope. Richard Sibbes
It is only in times of great and grievous dullness that the believer
regards prayer as a duty, and not as a privilege. The Hidden Life,
Adolph Saphir
It can easily be shown that all want of success, and all failure in the
spiritual life and in Christian work, is due to defective or insufficient
prayer. The Kneeling Christian
It is as natural to Him to answer prayer as it is for us to ask.
Kneeling Christian
The
It ought to be possible to give God one hour of twenty-four all to
Himself.
Samuel Chadwick
It must be because I live too little in the Spirit that my prayer is to
little in the Spirit. Andrew Murray
It is a totally wrong and fatal idea for one who would really pray to
think of God
as reluctant or unwilling to bless.
.Belden, p 17
The Practice of Prayer, Albert
It is in the atmosphere of prayer that the Holy Spirit nurtures and
develops our faith or redirects our wills.
It is always man’s tendency to work and speak and run whether
sent or not, and whether or not the hour is come.
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It is the man that most really has God that most really seeks God.
The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
It is when we pray, that the Holy Spirit takes of the things of Christ
and reveals them unto us (John 16:15).
The Kneeling Christian
It is well said that neglected prayer is the birth-place of all evil.
C. H. Spurgeon
It is only when whatsoever we do is done in His name that He will
do whatsoever we ask in His name.
The Kneeling Christian
It belongs to the very idea and nature of man to be in communion
with God.
It was once said to a useful minister: “Sir, if you did not plough in
your closet, you would not reap in your pulpit.”
The Power of Prayer, Samuel Prime p 248
It would seem as if the biggest thing in God’s universe is a man
who prays. There is only one thing more amazing, and that is-that
man, knowing this, should not pray. The Path of Prayer, Samuel
Chadwick, page 15
I would rather train twenty men to pray, than a thousand to preach;
A minister's highest mission ought to be to teach his people to pray.
H. MacGregor
I would rather teach one man to pray than ten men to preach.
Charles Spurgeon
Jesus puts “Abba” on the lips of those who trust in Him, for he
bought their birth-right with his blood.
Jesus taught his desciples that the highest exercise of prayer was
in obtaining God’s divinest bestowment, the gift of the Holy Spirit.
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Lk 11:13 William Patton
Job's friends chose the right time to visit him, but took not the right
course of improving their visit; had they spent the time in praying for
him which they did in hot disputes with him, they would have
profited him, and pleased God more. William Gurnall
John Wesley spent two hours daily in prayer, and commonly said
that ‘God does nothing but in answer to prayer.’ Martin Luther said,
‘If I fail to spend two hours in prayer each morning, the devil gets
the victory through the day. I have so much business I cannot get
on without spending three hours daily in prayer.
Learning about prayer can be positively harmful because it
increases our responsibility and intensifies our guilt if we fail to
pray. Principles and Practice of Prayer, Ivan French
Let me have your prayers, and I can do anything! Let me be
without my people’s prayers, and I can do nothing!
Let us give God the chance of putting His mind into us, and we
shall never doubt the power of prayer again.
Let him pray now that never prayed before,
And him that prayed before but pray the more.
The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
Let it be your business every day, in the secrecy of the inner
chamber, to meet the holy God.
Let no sense of your unworthiness prevent your taking hold of the
boundless and all-sufficient grace of God.
Lifeless prayer is no more prayer than a picture of a man is a man.
Richard Watson
Lips cry “God be merciful” That ne’er cry “God be praised.” O
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come let us adore Him!
The Kneeling Christian
Livingston of Shotts, on two different occasions, preached with
such power that in each service 500 were converted. Both sermons
were preceded by a night of prayer.
Lord, Be Thou within me, to strengthen me; Without me, to keep
me; Above me, to protect me; Beneath me, to uphold me; Before
me, to direct me; Behind me, to keep me from straying; Round
about me, to defend me. Blessed be Thou, O Lord, our Father, for
ever and ever. -Lancelot Andrewes (1555-1626)
Lord, make me an instrument of Thy peace; Where there is hatred,
let me sow love; Where there is injury, pardon; Where there is
doubt, faith; Where there is despair, hope; Where there is
darkness, light; Where there is sadness, joy. O divine Master, grant
that I may not so much seek To be consoled as to console, To be
understood as to understand, To be loved as to love; For it is in
giving that we receive; It is in pardoning that we are pardoned; It is
in dying that we are born to eternal life. - Francis of Assisi
Lukewarmness in prayer, as in everything else, is nauseating to
God and comes away empty-handed.
Many of the most blessed seasons of prayer I have ever known
have begun with the feeling of utter deadness and prayerlessness;
but in my helplessness and coldness I have cast myself upon God,
and looked to Him to send His Holy Spirit to teach me to pray, and
He has done it. R.A. Torrey
Many a person is praying for rain with his tub the wrong side up.
Sam Jones
Mary Queen of Scots (Bloody Mary as she was sometimes called)
was more terrified of John Knox’s prayers than she was of any
army that might be brought against her.
May not a single moment of my life be spent outside the light, love,
and joy of God’s presence and not a moment without the entire
surrender of my self as a vessel for Him to fill full of His Spirit and
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His love.” Andrew Murray
Men may spurn our appeals, reject our message, oppose our
arguments, despise our persons, but they are helpless against our
prayers. J. Sidlow Baxter
Men of power are without exception men of prayer.
Men who are reluctant about prayer do not belong in places of
leadership in the church. Principles and Practice of Prayer, Ivan
French
More things are wrought by prayer than this world dreams of.
Tennyson
Most Christians do not give God a chance to show His delight in
granting His children's petitions; for their requests are so vague and
indefinite. The Kneeling Christian
Much secret prayer means much public power.
Christian
The Kneeling
My prayer is Thy Will. Thou didst create it in me. It is Thine more
than mine.
The Soul of Prayer, by P. T. Forsyth
Neglecting prayer is not a weakness; it is a sinful choice.
The Arena of Prayer, Ben Jennings
Never will man pray as he ought unless the Master will guide both
his mouth and his heart. John Calvin
No great spiritual awakening has begun anywhere in the world
apart from united prayer---Christians persistently praying for revival. J. Edwin Orr
No church can be said to be fulfilling its ministry to any degree if it
320
is not laying hold of the power of God through prayer.
and Practice of Prayer, Ivan French
No man can progress in grace if he forsakes prayer.
Spurgeon
Principles
C. H.
No form of Christian service is both so universally open to all and
so high in Christ’s priority for all Christians as prevailing prayer.
Mighty Prevailing Prayer, Wesley Duewel
No one suffers from self-righteousness who spends much time in
prayer.
No man can expect to make progress in holiness who is not often
and long alone with God.
? No man realising God’s love will begrudge time for prayer or let
business or pleasure take precedence of his sacred trust with love. The Practice of Prayer,
No prayer, no breakfast.
No reasoned philosophy of prayer ever taught a soul to pray. The
Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick, page 21
Nothing brings such leanness into a man’s soul as lack of prayer.
C. H. Spurgeon
Nothing is beyond the reach of prayer except that which was out of
the will of God. Prayer Power Unlimited, J. Oswald Sanders
Nothing exceeds in power a holy man at prayer.
Nothing more clearly illustrates Armin Gesswein’s philosophy of
revival-prayer than the Upper Room. For this reason, throughout
the book we will spell it with a capital U and a capital R. And for the
sake of brevity, we could refer to it as the Just as every local
hospital has an ER, every local church needs a UR. Everything by
321
Prayer, Fred Hartley, page 13
Nothing would turn the nation back to God so surely and so quickly
as a Church that prayed and prevailed. The world will never
believe in a religion in which there is no supernatural power. A
rationalized faith, a socialized Church, and a moralized gospel may
gain applause, but they awaken no conviction and win no converts.
The Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick, page 89
Not until we are shut up to a difficulty which we can in no way
touch, may we rely on prayer alone. Prayer and its Remarkable
Answers, William Patton p 85
O Lord, grant that I may do Thy will as if it were my will, so that
Thou mayest do my will as if it were Thy will. Augustine
O let the excellency and high value of this gift of prayer engage our
earnestness and endeavours in proportion to its superior dignity.
Let us covet the best of gifts with the warmest desire, and pray for it
with ardent supplications. (1 Cor. 12:31). A Guide to Prayer, Isaac
Watts, 171
O let the place of secret prayer become to me the most beloved
spot on earth.
Oh, believe it, Prayer is the only thing absolutely certain and
attainable on earth--this is the only thing in which we can be
perfectly successful!
Oh, those cold-hearted prayers that die on our lips! Those frozen
supplications would not even move men’s hearts, how should they
move the heart of God?
C. H. Spurgeon
Oh, to be known at the throne. The Path of Prayer, Samuel
Chadwick, page 141
One has said that while prayer is the day's best beginning it must
not be like the handsome title-page of a worthless book. The Soul
of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
322
One of the first things He commands is that there shall be a place
of prayer. The Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick, page 28
One sin allowed in the life wrecks at once our usefulness and our
joy, and robs prayer of its power. The Kneeling Christian
One’s spiritual life will never rise above the practice of one’s private
prayer life. Developing your Secret Closet of Prayer, Richard Burr,
p 1.
Only they who have the mind of strangers and pilgrims can expect
to have fellowship with Jesus.
Only attempt to effect nearness to God by your own exertions,
when He has departed from you.
Our faith may be resting on a wrong basis: faith in faith or faith in
prayer rather than faith in God. Principles and Practice of Prayer,
Ivan French
Our growth in prayer may be to us the test of our growth in all other
respects. C. H. Spurgeon
Our Prayer-book, the Bible, does not prescribe prayer, but it does
more--it inspires it. And prayer in Christ's name is prayer inspired
by His first interest--the gospel. Do not use Christ simply to
countersign your egoist petition by a closing formula, but to create,
inspire, and glorify it. Prayer in Christ's name is prayer for Christ's
object--for His Kingdom, and His promise of the Holy Ghost. The
Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
Our prayer is what God hears, not merely the words we utter; God
hears our thoughts, the desires of our hearts
Our actions say that we do not consider prayer worth while.
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Our prayers are so cold and dry because there is so little of Christ
in them.
Our prayers may be an index of how small and self-centered our
world is.
A Call to Spiritual Refromation, D. A. Carson
Our Lord employed His time strategically, and in selecting His
priorities, He always set aside abundant time for prayer.
Our Savior’s call to prayer is simply a clarion call to holiness. “Be ye
holy!” for without holiness no man can see God, and prayer cannot
be efficacious. The Kneeling Christian
Our self-oblation stands on His; and the spirit of prayer flows from
the gift of the Holy Ghost, the great Intercessor. The Soul of
Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
Our disinclination to pray is our most painful experience; it is so
irrational and unaccountable. The Hidden Life, Adolph Saphir
Our prayer for a spiritual awakening will without question be most
effective if we take up the work of interceding for certain individuals
in particular.
Prayer, O. Hallesby, p 78
Our prayers are heard not so much because they are importunate
but because they are filial.
Our prayers are always a result of Jesus’ knocking at our heart’s
doors. Prayer, Ole Hallesby, p 11
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Our lives must be as holy as our prayers. Andrew Murray
Our spirituality and our fruitfulness are always in proportion to the
reality of our prayers. The Kneeling Christian
Out of a very intimate acquaintance with D. L. Moody, I wish to
testify that he was a far greater prayer than he was preacher. Time
and time again, he was confronted by obstacles that seemed
insurmountable, but he always knew the way to overcome all
difficulties. He knew the way to bring to pass anything that needed
to be brought to pass. He knew and believed in the deepest depths
of his soul that nothing was too hard for the Lord, and that prayer
could do anything that God could do. R. A. Torrey
Paul had prayed most of his life but as soon a he was converted it
is said of him “Behold, he prayeth,” Acts 9:11
Pentecost didn’t come through a preaching service; Pentecost
came to a prayer service. From Pentecost to Patmos, God never
departs from the pattern. –Armin Gesswein Everything by Prayer,
Fred Hartley, page 16
Praise and thanksgiving not only open the gates of heaven for me
to approach God, but also “prepare a way” for God to bless me.
The Kneeling Christian
Pray as if everything depends on God, then work as if everything
depends on you. - Martin Luther
Pray until you can pray; pray to be helped to pray and do not give
up praying because you cannot pray. For it is when you think you
cannot pray that is when you are praying. C. H. Spurgeon
Pray not to be seen of men but to be heard of God. John Mason
(1646-1694)
Pray often; for prayer is a shield to the soul, a sacrifice to God, and
325
a scourge for Satan.
John Bunyan
Pray ye. Is an invitation to be accepted rather than a command to
be obeyed. The Kneeling Christian
Pray to thy Father who is in secret....
Mt 6:6
Prayer alone prevents our receiving God's grace in vain. The Soul
of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
Prayer alone will overcome the gigantic difficulties which confront
the workers in every field. – John R. Mott
Prayer and theology both deal with God , but from different
perspectives. Theology, like a telescope, views the distant stars of
His qualities. Prayer, like a space vehicle, moves us among His
qualities. Theology studies God and prayer engages Him. Both
are adventuresome. Both necessary. The Arena of Prayer, Ben
Jennings
Prayer as it comes from the saint, is weak and languid; but when
the arrow of a saint's prayer is put into the bow of Christ's
intercession it pierces the throne of grace." Thomas Watson
Prayer at its best is living with mind and heart utterly open to God.
The Practice of Prayer, Albert D.Belden, p 18
Prayer, as our greatest work, breeds in us the flair for the greatest
work of God, the instinct of His kingdom and the sense of His track
in Time. The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
Prayer does not consist in gifted expressions and a volubility of
speech; but in a brokenness of heart.
John Mason (1646-1694)
Prayer does not consist in the elegance of the phrase, but in the
strength of the affection. John Mason (1646-1694)
326
Prayer draws on our whole personality; and not only so, but on the
whole God. And it draws on a God who really comes home
nowhere else. The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
Prayer establishes the soul of a man or a people, creates the moral
personality day by day, spreads outward the new heart through
society, and goes to make a new ethos in mankind. The Soul of
Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
Prayer for Church unity will not bring that unity; but that which stirs,
and founds, and wings prayer will. The Soul of Prayer, P.T.
Forsyth
Prayer for the in-dwelling of the Spirit, with all the fullness of his
sanctifying grace, ought then to be the most natural and continual
of the petitions of the Christian. William Patton
Prayer gives vision in the secret place, intelligence in work, sense
in judgment, courage in temptation, tenacity in adversity, and
joyous assurance in the will of God. The Path of Prayer, Samuel
Chadwick, page 100
Prayer is the converse of the soul with God. Therein we manifest or
express to Him our reverence, and love for His divine perfection,
our gratitude for all His mercies, our penitence for our sins, our
hope in His forgiving love, our submission to His authority, our
confidence in His care, our desires for His favor, and for the
providential and spiritual blessings needed for ourselves and
others. - Charles Hodge
Prayer goes by faith into the great orchard of God’s exceeding
great and precious promises, and with hand and heart picks the
ripest and richest fruit. - E. M. Bounds
Prayer has always been a primary mark of the saints of God in
every generation of the church. George Whitefield, who retired
punctually at ten p.m. every night, rose equally promptly at four
a.m. in order to pray. David Watson
327
Prayer is an offering up of our desires unto God, for things
agreeable to His will, in the name of Christ, with confession of our
sins, and thankful acknowledgment of His mercies. - Westminster
Shorter Catechism
Prayer is no more inconsistent with the unchangeable purposes of
God, than the use of any other means; for God in forming his
purposes had respect to all appropriate means of producing the
intended ends, and among these prayer has an important place. Archibald Alexander
Prayer in secret is life finding expression in the realized Presence
of God our Father. The Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick, page 65
Prayer is keeping company with God.
Alexandria
Clement of
Prayer is a mysterious instrumentality and can, in the final analysis,
be employed to full effect and with perfect success only by those
who are helpless. Prayer, O. Hallesby, p 152
Prayer is not an act of knowledge but of faith. It is not a matter of
calculation but of confidence--"that our faith should not stand in the
wisdom of men, but in the power of God." Which means that in this
region we are not to be regulated by science, but by God's selfrevelation. The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
Prayer is not ever thing, but everything is by prayer. –Armin
Gesswein Everything by Prayer, Fred Hartley, page 51
Prayer is not mere wishing. It is asking--with a will. Our will goes
into it. It is energy. The Soul of Prayer, by P. T. Forsyth
Prayer is not overcoming God’s reluctance; it is adjusting to God’s
willingness. Principles and Practice of Prayer, Ivan French
328
Prayer is communion with God: the “home-life” of the soul.
Prayer is not like a good recipe: simply follow a set of mechanical
directions and everything turns out right i the end. A Call to
Spiritual Reformation, D. A. Carson
Prayer is God’s appointed means for appropriating the blessings
that are ours in Christ Jesus.
A Call to Spiritual Reformation, D.
A. Carson
Prayer is practicing the presence of God, not mastering the
mechanics of how to come to God. Prayer Made Easy, Mark Water
Prayer is so major we dare not minor on it any longer. –Armin
Gesswein Everything by Prayer, Fred Hartley, page 52
Prayer is the atmosphere of revelation, in the strict and central
sense of that word. It is the climate in which God's manifestation
bursts open into inspiration. The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
Prayer is the proper work of the heart; yet in this present state, in
secret as well as in social prayer, the language of the lips is an
excellent aid in this part of worship. A Guide to Prayer, Isaac
Watts, p 68
Prayer needs fasting for its full and perfect development. Andrew
Murray
Prayer needs three organs of the body that are all located on the
head. The ear hears His word to us, the tongue repeats what we’ve
heard from Him back to Him, and the eye looks expectantly for the
answer. –Armin Gesswein Everything by Prayer, Fred Hartley,
page 91
Prayer meets with obstacles, which must be prayed away. That is
what men mean when they talk about praying through. The
Kneeling Christian
329
Prayer is the touchstone of true godliness.
Prayer is such a great effort to most of us because we do not pray
right. Prayer, O. Hallesby, p 42
Prayer should be the means by which I receive all that I need, and
for this reason, be my daily refuge, my source of rich and
inexhaustible joy. - O. Hallesby
Pray without ceasing in this sense. Pray without a break between
your prayer and your life. Pray so that there is a real continuity
between your prayer and your whole actual life. The Soul of
Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
Prayer worth calling prayer, prayer that God will call true prayer and
will treat as true prayer, takes for more time by the clock than one
man in a thousand thinks. Alexander Whyte
Prayer is the one hand with which we grasp the Invisible; fasting
the other, with which we let loose and cast away the visible.
Andrew Murray
Prayer is a golden chain: one end tied to the tongue of man, the
other to the ear of God
Prayer is a sacred and appointed means to obtain all the blessings
that we want, whether they relate to this life or the life to come.
Shall we not know how to use the means God has appointed for
our own happiness? A Guide to Prayer, Isaac Watts, 170
Prayer is not given us as a burden to be borne, or an irksome duty
to fulfill, but to be a joy and power to which there is no limit. The
Kneeling Christian
Prayer is going into the secret place of the Most High and abiding
under the shadow of the Almighty. Ps 91:1
330
Prayer, genuine and victorious, is continually offered without the
least physical effort or disturbance. Dr. Moule
Prayer is the key, and faith both turns the key and opens the door,
and claims the blessing. The Kneeling Christian
Prayer is like “time exposure” of the soul to God, in which process
the image of God is formed on the soul.
Prayer is indeed a continuous violent action of the spirit as it is lifted
up to God. This is comparable to that of a ship going against the
stream.
Luther
Prayer is more than something you do; it is something God does
through you. The Arena of Prayer, Ben Jennings
Prayer does not change God’s will, it implements it.
Prayer is omnipotent; it can do anything that God can do!
Prayer is not conquering God’s reluctance, but taking hold of God’s
willingness. Phillips Brooks
Prayer is appointed to convey The blessing God designs to give.
Prayer is God’s plan to supply man’s great and continuous need
with God’s great and continuous abundance. E. M. Bounds
Prayer is the key, and faith both turns the key and opens the door,
and claims the blessing. The Kneeling Christian
Prayer is not a soliloquy, where everything comes from one side;
but it is a dialogue, where God’s child listens to what the father
says and replies to it, and then asks for the things he needs.
331
Prayer is the first thing, the second thing, the third thing necessary
to a minister. Pray, then, my dear brother: pray, pray, pray.
Edward Payson
Prayer worth calling prayer, prayer that God will call true prayer and
will treat as true prayer takes far more time by the clock, than one
man in a thousand thinks. Alexander Whyte
Prayer was the cause, transfiguration was the effect.
Luke 9:29
Prayer in the heart proves the reality of conversion.
Prayer is self discipline. The effort to realize the presence and
power of God stretches the sinews of the soul and hardens its
muscles. To pray is to grow in grace. To tarry in the presence of
the King leads to new loyalty and devotion on the part of the faithful
subjects. Christian character grows in the secret place of prayer.
Samuel M. Zwemer
Prayer delights God's ear; it melts His heart; and opens His hand.
God cannot deny a praying soul. Thomas Watson
Prayer does not equip us for greater works–prayer is the greater
work. Oswald Chambers
Prayer takes the soul beyond doctrine.
Prayer completes the return of all things back to Him from Whom
they came.
Prayer does not consist in the elegance of the phrase, but in the
strength of the affection. John Mason (1646-1694)
Prayer grows in proportion to its grounding in God’s Word.
Arena of Prayer, Ben Jennings
332
The
Prayer, if it be done as a task, is not prayer.
1694)
John Mason (1646-
Prayer in the heart proves the reality of conversion.
Prayer completes the circuit of God’s action in the world.
Arena of Prayer, Ben Jennings
The
Prayer in the Spirit is prayer whose supreme object is the glory of
God; only in a secondary sense does it seek a blessing for self or
for others.
Prayer is more than something we do it is something that God does
through us.
Prayer is an athletic of the soul.
Prayer completes the circuit or God’s will, it affects His will. The
Arena of Prayer, Ben Jennings
Prayer is omnipotent; it can do anything that God can do!
Prayer is the soul’s breathing itself into the bosom of its heavenly
Father. Thomas Watson
Prayer is a golden chain: one end tied to the tongue of man, the
other to the ear of God
Prayer, real prayer, is the noblest, the sublimest, the most
stupendous act that any creature of God can perform.
Kneeling Christian
The
Prayer reaches its highest level when offered in the Name which is
above every name, for it lifts the petitioner into unity and identity
with Himself
333
Prayer is communion with God: the “home-life” of the soul.
Prayer is not really a power till it is importunate. And it cannot be
importunate unless it is felt to have a real effect on the Will of God.
The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
Prayer is the native movement of the spiritual life that receives its
meaning and its soul only in Eternity, that works in the style and
scale of Eternity, owns its principles, and speaks its speech The
Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
Prayer is the touchstone of true godliness.
Prayer is an art which only the Spirit can teach us. He is the giver
of all prayer. C. H. Spurgeon
Prayer Is What God Hears, Not Merely The Words We Utter; God
Hears Our Thoughts, The Desires Of Our Hearts.
Prayer is not just our duty; it is our greatest dignity.
Prayer laid the tracks where the gospel was going to come.
Wellington Boone
The Arena of Prayer, Ben Jennings
Prayer secret, fervent, believing prayer lies at the root of all
personal godliness. William Carey
Prayer should rise more out of God's Word and concern for His
kingdom than even out of our personal needs, trials, or desires.
That is implied in prayer in Christ's name or for Christ's sake,
prayer from His place in the midst of the Kingdom. The Soul of
Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
Prayer still remains what it would have been if man had never
fallen.
334
Prayer is going into “the secret place of the Most High,” and abiding
under the shadow of the Almighty Ps. 91:1
Prayer is measured, not by time, but by intensity.
Christian
The Kneeling
Prayerless pulpits will produce prayerless and powerless
congregations. Mighty Prevailing Prayer, Wesley Duewel
Prayerless is an insult to God.
Jennings
The Arena of Prayer, Ben
Prayerlessness means unavailability to God.
Mighty Prevailing Prayer, Wesley Duewel
Prayerlessness proves that the person has very little love for God.
Mighty Prevailing Prayer, Wesley Duewel
Prayers and praises go in pairs, they have praises who have
prayers.
Prayers are measured neither by time nor by number, but by
intensity. The Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick, page 21
Prayers counted on a rosary are easier than the prayers of a soul
poured out in unrestrained speech to God. The Path of Prayer,
Samuel Chadwick, page 18
Praying makes your Christian life supernatural; God gets His work
done through your praying. The Arena of Prayer, Ben Jennings
Praying solves the problems of prayer. The Path of Prayer, Samuel
Chadwick, page 87
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Praying will make you leave off sinning, or sinning will make you
leave off praying.
Praying makes your Christian life supernatural; God gets His work
done through your praying. The Arena of Prayer, Ben Jennings
Preaching must necessarily be limited, but who can put a limit to
the possibilities and power of prayer? Principles and Practice of
Prayer, Ivan French
Prevailing prayer is the most divine ministry you will ever have.
Mighty Prevailing Prayer, Wesley Duewel
Prevailing prayer is almost always for the sake of others.
Prevailing Prayer, Wesley Duewel
Mighty
Prevailing prayer is when intellect, emotion, and will unite to take
hold of God.
Prevailing prayer is aggressive spiritual warfare.
Prevailing prayer makes men invincible. The Path of Prayer,
Samuel Chadwick, page 81
Private prayer, when it is real action, is the greatest forge of
personality. It places a man in direct and effective contact with God
the Creator, the source of originality, and especially with God the
Redeemer as the source of the new creation. The Soul of Prayer,
P.T. Forsyth
Private prayer, when it is made a serious business, when it is
formed prayer, when we pray audibly in our chamber, or when we
write our prayers, guided always by the day's record, the passion of
piety, and above all the truths of Scripture, is worth more for our
true and grave and individual spirituality than gatherings of greater
unction may be. The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
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Proud prayers may knock their heads on mercy’s lintel, but they
can never pass through the portal. C. H. Spurgeon
Public prayer ought to be the overflow of one’s private praying. A
Call to Spiritual Reformation, D. A. Carson
Real faith not only believes that God can, but that He does answer
prayer. The Kneeling Christian
Rest not or be satisfied with drawing nigh to God, but obtain the
promise.
Rest assured that God never bestows tomorrow’s gift today.
Revivals come to those cities and communities, which have
believers who have taken up the holy work of intercession.
Prayer, O. Hallesby, p 79
Satan laughs at our toiling, mocks at our wisdom, but trembles
when we pray.
Satan trembles when he sees, The weakest saint upon his knees.
Satan does not fear because we are eager and earnest Bible
students --provided we are little in prayer.
Satan loves to see us "up to our eyes" in work: provided we do not
pray.
Satan does not fear because we are eager and earnest Bible
students: provided we are little in prayer.
Satan’s chief way of hindering us is to try to fill our minds with the
thought of our needs, so that they shall not be occupied with
thoughts of God, our loving Father, to Whom we pray.
The
Kneeling Christian
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Saul of Tarsus had been a praying man all his life, but it was not
until then that he began to pray as God interprets prayer. Act 9:11
The Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick, page 16
Secret prayer is one of the best tests of sincere religion.
See the incense of the Lord’s intercession and your prayer will rise
up with and in His prayer. The Hidden Life, Adolph Saphir
Shall I come into your presence, O my God, and mock You with
cold-hearted words? C. H. Spurgeon
Should it not be recognized that the practice of prayer and
intercession needs to be taught to young believers, or rather
developed in young believers, quite as much, if not more so than
other branches of the curriculum? Unless, however, we ourselves
are, through constant persevering practice, truly alive unto God in
this holy warfare, we shall be ineffective in influencing others. I am
quite sure the rule holds that the more we pray the more we want to
pray; the converse also being true. D. E. Hoste
Sin quenches prayer, affliction quickens it.
1694)
John Mason (1646-
Sir Isaac Newton said that he could take his telescope and look
millions and millions miles into space. Then he added, “But when I
lay it aside, go into my room, shut the door, and get down on my
knees in earnest prayer, I see more of heaven and feel closer to the
Lord than if I were assisted by all the telescopes on earth.”
So important a factor is prayer in Christian experience, that the
history of a man’s progress in the Divine life is just the history of his
progress in the knowledge and in the use of prayer. Macgregor
quoted in How Can God Answer Prayer?, William Edward
Biederwolf, p 23
So many of us pray because we are driven by need rather than
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kindled by grace. Our prayer is a cry rather than a hymn. It is a
quest rather than a tryst. It trembles more than it triumphs. It asks
for strength rather than exerts it. The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
Some place must be found that shall be a trysting place with God.
The Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick, page 34
Sometimes when we do not receive comfort in our prayers, when
we are broken and cast down, that is when we are really wrestling
and prevailing in prayer.
C. H. Spurgeon
Sometimes He delays so that greater glory may be brought to
Himself. The Kneeling Christian
So true is it that the kingdom of God comes not with observation,
that the greatest things Christ did for it were done in the night and
not in the day; His prayers meant more than His miracles. The
Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
So we pray because we were made for prayer, and God draws us
out by breathing Himself in.
The Soul of Prayer, by P. T.
Forsyth
Speak to Him then, for He hears,
And spirit with spirit can meet;
Closer is He than breathing,
And nearer than hands or feet. - Tennyson
Take my life, and let it be
Consecrated, Lord, to Thee.
Take time in the inner chamber to bow down and worship; and wait
on him till he unveils himself and takes possession of you, and
goes out with you, to show how a man may live and walk in abiding
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fellowship with an unseen lord.
That we may pray for others is the deepest mystery and the
crowning glory of prayer. The Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick,
page 110
That which begins not with prayer, seldom winds up with comfort.
John Flavel
The angel fetched Peter out of the prison, but it was prayer fetched
the angel.
Thomas Watson
The art of prayer is Nature gone to heaven. We become in prayer
Nature's true artists (if we may so say), the vehicles of its finest and
inmost passion. The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
The bane of so much theology, old and new, is that it has been
deluded of prayer and prepared in a vacuum.
The Soul of
Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
The basis of prayer is sonship. Prayer is possible and reasonable
because it is filial. The Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick, page 14
The Bible unhesitatingly places all instrumentalities at his disposal,
and represents him as working back of visible agencies.
Prayer
and its Remarkable Answers, William Patton p 63
The biggest thing God ever did for me was to teach me to pray in
the Spirit. Samuel Chadwick
The breath of prayer comes from the life of faith.
John Mason (1646-1694)
The Church has not yet touched the fringe of the possibilities of
intercessory prayer. Her largest victories will be witnessed when
individual Christians everywhere come to recognize their priesthood
unto God and day by day give themselves unto prayer. John R.
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Mott
The contemplation of the unseen, the attempt to think ion terms of
the eternal, and the honest endeavor of the soul to enter in
communion with God, in themselves, redeem life from all that is
fitful, fretful and futile. The Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick,
page 77
The divine pattern of each life is still to be seen in the secret place
of the Most High God. The Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick,
page 80
The effective prayer of faith comes from a life given up to the will
and the love of God. Not as a result of what I try to be when
praying, but because of what I am when I’m not praying, is my
prayer answered by God. Andrew Murray in With Christ in the
School of Prayer.
The effects of prayer may be conveniently divided into the results of
prayer upon the person praying and the results of prayer upon the
world. The Practice of Prayer, Albert D.Belden, p 20
The evangelization of the world in this generation depends first of
all upon a revival of prayer. Deeper than the need for men; deeper,
far, than the need for money; aye, deep down at the bottom of our
spiritless life is the need for the forgotten secret of prevailing,
worldwide prayer. – Robert E. Speer
The failure of the habit of prayer is at the root of much of our light
distaste for theology. The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
The first rule of right prayer is to have our heart and mind framed as
becomes those who are entering into conversation with God
John Calvin
The greatest thing anyone can do for God and man is pray. It is not
the only thing, but it is the chief thing. The great people of earth are
the people who pray. I do not mean those who talk about prayer;
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nor those who say they believe in prayer; nor yet those who can
explain about prayer; but I mean those people who take time to
pray. - S. D. Gordon
The great souls who became mighty in prayer and rejoiced to
spend three and four hours a day alone with God were once
beginners.The Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick, page 32
The great souls who became mighty in prayer and rejoiced to
spend three and four hours a day alone with God were once
beginners. The Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick, page 32
The greatest need of most of us regarding prayer is not the clearing
up of its logical problems, but its efficient practice. The Practice of
Prayer, Albert D.Belden, p 13
The great point is never to give up until the answer comes, said
Muller. I have been praying for sixty-three years and eight months
for one man’s conversion. He is not converted yet, but he will be!
How can it be otherwise?
The heartbeat of intercession is servanthood.
Dick Eastman p 6
Love on its Knees,
The highest position, in the greatest and most complicated
monarchy, did not keep Daniel from daily, frequent supplication.
The key that locks the prayer closet door unlocks the chambers of
paradise.
The Lord Jesus makes intercession for us (Hebrews 7:25), and
God cannot say Him “Nay.” The Kneeling Christian
The man who has his mouth full of arguments in prayer shall soon
have his mouth full of benedictions in answer to prayer. C.H.
Spurgeon
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The man who mobilizes the Christian church to pray will make the
greatest contribution to world evangelization in history. Andrew
Murray
The man who never fasts is no more in the way to heaven than the
man who never prays. –John Wesley
The minister ought never to speak before men in God's name
without himself first speaking to God in man's name, and making
intercession as for himself so for his people. The Soul of Prayer,
P.T. Forsyth
The missionary church is a praying church. The history of missions
is a history of prayer. Everything vital to the success of the world's
evangelization hinges on prayer. Are thousands of missionaries
and tens of thousands of native workers needed? ‘Pray ye
therefore the Lord of the harvest, that He send forth laborers into
His harvest.’ – John R. Mott
The missionary leaves by taking ship or plane; the intercessor
leaves by shutting the door of his closet. Principles and Practice of
Prayer, Ivan French
The more we have of God’s glory, the less shall we seek His gifts.
The Kneeling Christian
The more you intercede, the more intimate will be your walk with
Christ and the stronger you will become by the Spirit’s power.
The more you prevail, the more you will learn the secrets of God’s
grace and the powers of His kingdom.
Mighty Prevailing Prayer,
Wesley Duewel
The most amazing feature of that life as it is looked back upon will
be its prayerlessness. The Kneeling Christian
The neglect of prayer proves to my mind, that there is a large
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Mighty Prevailing Pray
amount of practical infidelity. If the people believed that there was a
real, existing, personal God, they would ask Him for what they
wanted, and they would get what they asked. But they do not ask,
because they do not believe or expect to receive. – Brownlow North
The “oil” of the Holy Spirit will never cease to flow so long as there
are empty vessels to receive it. I Kings 4: 6
The one concern of the devil is to keep Christians from praying. He
fears nothing from prayerless studies, prayerless work, and
prayerless religion. He laughs at our toil, mocks at our wisdom, but
trembles when we pray. - Samuel Chadwick (Prokope, JanuaryMarch, 1998, p. 2)
The one thing above all others that bolts and bars the way into the
“presence chamber’s of prayer is unwillingness to forgive from the
heart. The Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick, page 31
The only thing we can secure on earth is heaven. if we draw nigh to
God, God does draw nigh
The only way to completely fail in prayer is to fail to pray! The
Praying Church, Sue Curran p 83
The power of the Church truly to bless rests on–asking and
receiving heavenly gifts to carry to men. Ministry of Intercession,
Andrew Murray p 5
The principle exercise which the children of god have is to pray. For
in this way they give true proof of their faith.
John Calvin (the
apostle of predestination)
The purpose of prayer is not to get man’s will done in heaven, but
to get God’s will done on earth. Phillips Brooks`
The sin of prayerlessness is a proof.....that the life of God in the
soul is in deadly sickness and weakness.
Andrew
Murray
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The greatest thing we can do for God or for man is to pray.
Kneeling Christian
The
The amount of time we give to prayer indicates how important
prayer is to us.
The best way to fight against sin is to fight it on our knees.
Henry
Phillip
The Christian man at prayer is the secretary of Creation's praise.
The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
The energies of the universe, nay, of God Himself, are at the
disposal of those who pray to the man who stirreth up himself to
take hold of God. Samuel Zwemer
The essence of prayer does not consist in asking God for
something but in opening our hearts to God, in speaking with Him,
and living with Him in perpetual communion. Prayer is continual
abandonment to God. Prayer does not mean asking God for all
kinds of things we want; it is rather the desire for God Himself, the
only Giver of Life, Prayer is not asking, but union with God. Prayer
is not a painful effort to gain from God help in the varying needs of
our lives. Prayer is the desire to possess God Himself, the Source
of all life. The true spirit of prayer does not consist in asking for
blessings, but in receiving Him who is the giver of all blessings, and
in living a life of fellowship with Him. Sadhu Sundar Singh
The great battles, the battles that decide our destiny and the
destiny of generations yet unborn, are not fought on public
platforms, but in the lonely hours of the night and in moments of
agony. Samuel Logan Brengle
The history of missions is the history of answered prayer. From
Pentecost to the Haystack meeting in New England and from the
days when Robert Morrison landed in China to the martyrdom of
John and Betty Stam, prayer has been the source of power and the
secret of spiritual triumph. Samuel Zwemer
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The Holy Spirit is the “spirit of grace and supplication” Zech 12:10
He overcomes our reluctance.
The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of prayer.
The best prayer does not seek the God’s gifts but the experience of
His person.
The Holy Spirit is prayer’s great Helper.
The Inner Chamber Is The Place Where The Decisive Victory Is
Obtained.
The measure of believing, continued prayer will be the measure of
the Spirit’s working in the Church. Direct, definite, determined
prayer is what we need.
Ministry of Intercession, Andrew
Murray, p 22
The measure of God’s giving the Spirit is our asking.
Intercession, Andrew Murray, p 23
Ministry of
The omnipotent God we pray to cannot have degrees of difficulty.
The prayer-life of man lies rooted in his instinctive recognition of his
dependence on some power or being greater than himself. The
Practice of Prayer, Albert D.Belden, p 7
The prayer of faith is the only power in the universe to which the
Great Jehovah yields. Prayer is the sovereign Remedy. Robert
Hall
The prayer of the vindictive for forgiveness is mockery. The Soul
of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
The prayer power has never been tried to its full capacity. If we
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want to see mighty wonders of divine power and grace wrought in
the place of weakness, failure and disappointment, let us answer
God’s standing challenge, ‘Call unto me, and I will answer thee,
and show thee great and mighty things which thou knowest not! (J.
Hudson Taylor)
The promises to hear prayer are not made to the mere form, but to
the appropriate spirit. Prayer and its Remarkable Answers, William
Patton p 73
The purpose of importunate prayer is:
1. To purge our wills to the point that our will is limited to His will.
2. To perfect our nature into complete likeness to His nature.
The purpose of prayer is not to notify God but to express our trust,
our faith, our expectation, and our heart desire. Watchman Nee
The reason so many people do not pray is because of its cost. The
cost is not so much in the sweat of agonizing supplication as in the
daily fidelity to the life of prayer.The Path of Prayer, Samuel
Chadwick, page 27
The reason we do not pray as we ought is because we do not enjoy
prayer as we ought.
There is a divine principle in regard to prayer which runs all through
the Scriptures. It is that God is pleased to unite His people with
Himself in whatever He is about to do. He first of all leads them to
pray, and then does what He intends in answer to their prayers. Russell Elliott
The results of prayer are, therefore, not dependent upon the
powers of the one who prays. Prayer, Ole Hallesby, p 13
There is absolutely no substitute for this secret communion with
God. The public Church services, or even the family altar, cannot
take the place of the 'closet' prayer. We must deliberately seek to
meet with God absolutely alone, and to secure such aloneness with
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God we are bidden to 'enter into thy closet.' God absolutely insists
on this 'closet' communion with Himself. One reason, no doubt, that
He demands it, is to test our sincerity. There is no test for the soul
like solitude. Do you shrink from solitude? Perhaps the cause for
your neglect of the 'closet' is a guilty conscience? You are afraid to
enter into the solitude. You know that however cheerful you appear
to be you are not really happy. You surround yourself with company
lest, being alone, truth should invade your delusion…
Gordon
Cove
There is no such engine for the growth and command of the moral
soul, single, or social, as prayer.
The Soul of Prayer, P.T.
Forsyth
The revival of religion and the revival of prayer are inseparable.
The same Spirit of faith which teaches a man to cry earnestly,
teaches him to wait patiently. John Mason (1646-1694)
The school of prayer has its conditions and demands. It is a
forbidden place to all but those of set purpose and resolute
heart.The Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick, page 27
The secret of all failure is our failure in secret prayer.
Christian
The Knelling
The secret of much mischief to our souls, and to the souls of
others, lies in the way that we stint, and starve, and scamp our
prayers by hurrying over them. Alexander Whyte
The Secret of Praying is Praying in Secret.
The secret place of prayer calls for every faculty of mind and heart.
The Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick, page 30
The secret place of prayer calls for every faculty of mind and heart.
The Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick, page 30
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The short prevailing prayer cannot be prayed by one who has not
prevailed in a mightier struggle of long continuance. E. M. Bounds
The soul needs its silent spaces. It is in them we learn to pray.
The Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick, page 29
The Spirit helps us in our weakness.
Rom 8:26
The Spirit Himself intercedes for us.
Rom 8:26
The Spirit imparts a sense of sonship and acceptance that creates
freedom and confidence in the presence of God.
The spirit in which we pray is much more important than the works
in which our prayers are clothed.
Prayer Power
Unlimited, J. Oswald Sanders
The Spirit of God, when he is poured out as a spirit of prayer in the
most glorious measures, does not contradict the rules of a natural
and reasonable method, although His methods may have infinite
variety in them.
A Guide to Prayer, Isaac Watts, p 63
The study and the oratory are allies, but the inner chamber is better
to be a place apart; then prayer enlightens thinking, and thinking
kindles the altar fires of the heart. The Path of Prayer, Samuel
Chadwick, page 67
The subject is beset with problems, but there are no problems of
prayer to the man who prays! The Path of Prayer, Samuel
Chadwick, page 21
The theory of religion is really the philosophy of prayer; and the
best theology is compressed prayer. The Soul of Prayer, P.T.
Forsyth
The time factor in prayer is very important. In the exercise of prayer
God is not tied to our clocks. Neither is He at the other end of the
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phone to receive and answer our two minute calls. It takes time to
know the mind of God, to shut out the material things of earth and
to be wholly abandoned. Hugh C. C. McCullough
The true waiting for the Lord, and going forth to meet the
Bridegroom, is hidden from outward observation. The Hidden Life,
Adolph Saphir
The truths that I know best I have learned on my knees. I never
know a thing well, till it is burned into my heart by prayer. John
Bunyan
The unvarnished truth is that what we most frequently give thanks
for betrays what we most highly value. A Call to Spiritual
Reformation, D.A. Carson
The value of a daily habit of withdrawal and hallowed seclusionis is
beyond exaggeration. The Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick,
page 77
The walls of Jericho did not fall until the Israelites had circled them
a full thirteen times and then shouted the shout of faith. Josh 6:120
The wonder is not that God hears prayer, but that He is our Father.
The greater wonder includes the less. The Path of Prayer, Samuel
Chadwick, page 63
The world seeks to go out into wide and boundless fields; we desire
to abide within, where Jesus sups with us, and we with Him. The
Hidden Life, Adloph Saphir
There are many problems about prayer, but they lie outside the fact
and experience of prayer, and apart from praying there is no
solution to them. The Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick, page 14
The reason why many fail in battle is because they wait until the
hour of battle. The reason why others succeed is because they
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have gained their victory on their knees long before the battle
came...Anticipate your battles; fight them on your knees before
temptation comes, and you will always have victory. R. A. Torrey
There is a kind of omnipotence in prayer.
There is much praying that avails nothing, so far as we can judge.
The Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick, page 21
There is no better way to serve others than to pray for them.
There is nothing about which I do not pray. I go over all my life in
the presence of God. All my problems are solved there. The Path
of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick, page 100
There is no way to learn to pray but by praying. The Path of
Prayer, Samuel Chadwick, page 21
There is a cumulative effect in prayer. The focusing of many
prayers on one life or on a situation can change defeat into victory.
Prayer Power Unlimited, J. Oswald Sanders
There is no easier sin to commit than the sin of prayerlessness. It is
a sin against God and against Man. Mighty Prevailing Prayer,
Wesley Duewel
There is a need in the soul of the believer that can be satisfied only
when we move from being a spectator to a participator in prayer.
There is an inseparable union between the Spirit, the Word and
prayer.
There is a holy audacity in Christian life and faith which is not
inconsistent with the profoundest humility. A. B. Simpson
There is nothing the devil dreads so much as prayer?
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The
Kneeling Christian
There is a marked absence of travail. There is much phrasing, but
little pleading. Prayer has become a soliloquy instead of a passion.
The powerlessness of the church needs no other explanation...To
be prayerless is to be both passionless and powerless. Samuel
Chadwick
The Word of God represents all the possibilities of God as at the
disposal of true prayer. A. T. Pierson
They who prevail in the secret place of the Most High cannot be
beaten anywhere. The Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick, page 81
This is what prayer is all about: not what I can get from God, but to
have my heart so radically changed by Him that I come to want only
what God wants for me. Developing your Secret Closet of Prayer,
Richard Burr, p 6
Those postures of the body which the light of nature and rule of
Scripture seem to dictate as most proper for prayer are standing,
kneeling or prostration…. But I cannot thank that sitting, or other
postures of rest and laziness, ought to be indulged in solemn times
of prayer, unless persons are in some respect infirm or aged.
A Guide to Prayer, Isaac
Those who feel they owe everything to God's grace need have no
difficulty about the range of prayer. They may pray for everything.
The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
Thou art coming to a King; Large petitions with thee bring.
Though in its beginnings prayer is so simple that the feeblest child
can pray, yet it is at the same time highest and holiest work to
which man can rise. It is fellowship with the unseen and most Holy
One.
Three ways to fulfill the great commission:
1. In Person.
2. In Provision.
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3. In Prayer.
Through prayer God gives humankind the dignity of limited
causality. Pascal
Thus our Lord gives us “power of attorney” over His kingdom, the
kingdom of heaven, if only we fulfill the condition of abiding in Him.
The Kneeling Christian
Thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.
6:6
Mat
To arouse one man or woman to the tremendous power of prayer
for others, is worth more than the combined activity of a score of
average Christians. A. J. Gordon
To begin our prayer with a petition for the hallowing of God's name
and to have no real and prime place for holiness in our life or faith
is not sincere. The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
To begin the day with prayer is but a formality unless it go on in
prayer, unless for the rest of it we pray in deed what we began in
word. The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
To cultivate the ceaseless spirit of prayer, use more frequent acts
of prayer. To learn to pray with freedom, force yourself to pray. The
great liberty begins in necessity. The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
To Him we may confide what we could in trust to no human friend.
\To pray as God would have us pray is the greatest achievement of
earth. Such a life costs. It takes time. Samuel Chadwick
To pray “in His name” is to pray in His character, as His
representative sent by Him: it is to pray by His Spirit and according
to His will.
The Kneeling Christian
To stoop well is a grand art in prayer.
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To strive in prayer means in the final analysis to take up the battle
against all the inner and outward hindrances which would
dissociate us from the Spirit of prayer. Prayer, O. Halesby, p 114
To pray as God would have us pray is the greatest achievement on
earth. Samuel Chadwick
To be a Christian without prayer is no more possible than to be
alive without breathing.”
Martin Luther
To have power with men, we must have power with God.
Too often we are over-organized and under-agonized.
Walter B. Knight (Wordsearch)
To pray well is the better half of study. Martin Luther
To pray diligently is more than half the task. Martin Luther
To pray in the Spirit means to pray in harmony with the Word of
God, which He has inspired.
To be much alone with God is the secret of knowing Him and of
influence with Him. E. M. Bounds
To effect such a radical change in our lifestyles as will make more
time for prayer will call for strength of purpose and a deep
dependence on the Holy Spirit. Prayer Power Unlimited, J.
Oswald Sanders
Tomorrow’s achievements are determined by today’s preparation.
This is especially true in regard to prayer.
To sacrifice service to pray is good,
To sacrifice prayer to do service is bad.
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Tragically, we have failed to realize that prayer is the launch pad of
all ministry and without it we short-circuit God’s chosen method of
work. Developing your Secret Closet of Prayer, Richard Burr, p
18.
True Christian prayer must have theology in it; no less than true
theology must have prayer in it and must be capable of being
prayed. "Your theology is too difficult," said Charles V to the
Reformers; "it cannot be understood without much prayer." Yes,
that is our arduous puritan way. Prayer and theology must
interpenetrate to keep each other great, and wide, and mighty. The
failure of the habit of prayer is at the root of much of our light
distaste for theology. The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
The true close of prayer is when the utterance expires in its own
spiritual fullness. That is the true Amen. Such times there are. We
feel we are at last laid open to God. We feel as though we "did see
heaven opened, and the holy angels, and the great God Himself."
(Handel's words, on completing the Messiah.) The prayer ends
itself; we do not end it. It mounts to its heaven and renders its spirit
up to God, saying, "It is finished." It has its perfect consummation
and bliss, its spiritually natural close and fruitation, whether it has
answer or not. The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
To arouse one man or woman to the tremendous power of prayer
for others, is worth more than the combined activity of a score of
average Christians. A. J. Gordon
True prayer is an awareness of our helpless need and an
acknowledgment of divine adequacy. Ray Stedman
True prayer is not asking God for what we want but for what He
wants.
True prayer will achieve just as much as it costs us. Samuel M.
Zwemer
True revival lives in prayer.
The Prayer Meeting and Its History, J.
355
B. Johnston
True prayer is God the Holy Spirit talking to God the Father in the
name of God the Son, and the believer’s heart is the prayer-room.
Samuel M. Zemer
Truly he who prays puts, not God, but his own spiritual life to the
test! The Kneeling Christian
Unanswered yet? Nay, do not say ungranted;
Perhaps your part is not yet wholly done;
The work began when first your prayer was uttered,
And God will finish what He has begun.
Though years have passed since then, do not despair;
His glory you shall see, sometime, somewhere.
- Ophelia Adams
Unless we are living the Victorious Life we cannot truly pray “in the
name” of Christ, and our prayer-life must of necessity be feeble,
fitful and oft-times unfruitful.
The Kneeling Christian
Unless we are willing to pay the price, and sacrifice time and
attention and what appear legitimate or necessary duties, for the
sake of the heavenly gifts we need not look for a large experience
of the power of the heavenly world in our work. Ministry of
Intercession, Andrew Murray, p 15
Unless we pray aright we cannot live aright or serve aright.
Unless the heart is right the prayer must be wrong.
Christian
The Kneeling
Waiting on God is not in apathy and indifference; it implies intense
activity.
We always pray best when we pray out of the depths--when the
soul gets low enough she gets a leverage; she can then plead with
God. C. H. Spurgeon
356
We are never really men of prayer in the best sense, until we re
filled with the Holy Ghost. The Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick,
page 62
We are so egoistically engrossed about God's giving of the answer
that we forget His gift of the prayer itself. The Soul of Prayer, by P.
T. Forsyth
We do not pray to inform God. Neither do we pray to persuade
Him, for His love needs neither to be induced nor coaxed. The
Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick, page 66
We are never really men of prayer in the best sense, until we are
filled with the Holy Spirit. J. Stuart Holden
We are taught to pray, not “Thy will be changed,” but “Thy will be
done.”
We are tempted to treat God as an asset, and to exploit him. But
true prayer, thinking most of the Giver, quells the egoism and
dissolves it in praise. The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
We are the vehicle of the Spirit’s intercession.
We are to pray only for what God has promised, and for the
communication of it unto us in that way whereby he will work it and
effect it. John Owen
We do not know what we ought to pray for.
Rom 8:26
We give lip service to prayer far more than we give our lips to the
service of prayer. The Praying Church, Sue Curran
We have been so busy depending on our own natural strengths,
our good training and our busyness for God that we are near
spiritual bankruptcy. Mighty Prevailing Prayer, Wesley Duewel
357
We know not what prayer cannot do!
C.H. Spurgeon
We know not what we should pray for as we ought, and if prayer
waits for understanding it will never begin. The Path of Prayer,
Samuel Chadwick, page 21
We must go many times every day into the unseen world.
We must be earnest, otherwise we have no right to hope that the
Lord will hear our prayer. C. H . Spurgeon
We need to learn to know Him so well that we feel safe when we
have left our difficulties with Him. - O. Hallesby
We cannot be men of prevailing prayer unless we study God’s
Word to find out His will for us. The Kneeling Christian
We do not know much about prayer, but surely this need not
prevent us from praying! The Kneeling Christian
We are never so high as when we are on our knees.
Kneeling Christian
The
We are on the whole disposed to emphasize activity in prayer too
much. Prayer, O. Hallesby, p 94
We enjoy His presence only when He comes of His own accord;
this most precious of all gifts none can take to himself.
We dishonor God by distrusting Him!
The Kneeling Christian
We have far too little conception of the place that intercession, as
distinguished from prayer for ourselves, ought to have in the
Church and the Christian life. The Ministry of Intercession, Andrew
Murray, p 5
358
We shall have our Mount of Transfiguration when prayer has its
rightful place in our lives. The Kneeling Christian
We shall find every attribute of God Most High to be, as it were, a
great battering-ram, with which we may open the gates of heaven.
C. H. Spurgeon
We need to see much our deep needs, our great sins, for ah! that
prayer shall go highest that comes from the lowest. C. H.
Spurgeon
We pray for ourselves, for the state of the world, for the peace of all
things, and for the postponement of the end.
Tertullian
We should never think it unreasonable that God should make some
things dependent upon our prayers.
We will not grow in prayer unless we plan to pray. A Call to
Spiritual Reformation, D.A. Carson
We cannot justify our relative prayerlessness by saying that those
who are peculiarly effective are more gifted than we. A Call to
Spiritual Reformation, D. A. Carson
What a man is on his knees before God in secret, that will he be
before men: that much and no more. Fred Mitchell
Who can measure the influence of an hour a day spent alone with
God? The Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick, page 30
We must continue in prayer if we are to get an outpouring of the
Spirit. Christ says there are some things we shall not get, unless we
pray and fast, yes, prayer and fasting. We must control the flesh
and abstain from whatever hinders direct fellowship with God.
Andrew Bonar
359
We must turn God’s promises into prayer, and then they shall be
turned into performance. Principles and Practice of Prayer, Ivan
French
What man is alone on his knees before God, that he is, and no
more. Robert Murray M’Cheyne
What does it mean to ask in His name? We must know this at all
costs, for it is the secret of all power in prayer.
What genius does in the natural world prayer does in the spiritual.
The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
What is prayer? It is a sign of spiritual life.
The Kneeling Christian
What various hindrances we meet In coming to the mercy-seat.
What would happen to the Church if the Lord's Prayer became a
test for membership as thoroughly as the Creeds have been? The
Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
When a person is born from above, the life of the Son of God is
born in him, and he can either starve that life or nourish it. Prayer is
the way to nourish one’s life with God. Our ordinary views of prayer
are not found in the New Testament. We look upon prayer as a
means of getting things for ourselves; the Bible’s idea of prayer is
that we may get to know God Himself. It is not so true that ‘prayer
changes things’ as that prayer changes me and I change things.
God has so constituted things that prayer on the basis of
redemption alters the way in which one looks at things. Prayer is
not a question of altering things externally, but of working wonders
in one’s disposition. Oswald Chambers, Christian Personal Ethics,
C. F. H. Henry, Eerdmans, 1957, pp. 573ff
When asked how much time he spent in prayer, George Mueller’s
reply was, “Hours every day. But I live in the spirit of prayer. I pray
as I walk and when I lie down and when I arise. And the answers
are always coming.” - Anon
360
When asked the secret of his spiritual power, Charles Spurgeon
said: “Knee work! Knee work!”
When men only talk about God instead of with God they are
manifesting a deteriorated faith, for the purpose of all faith is to
bring us into direct, personal, vital touch with God. Ray Stedman
When I pray coincidences happen, and when I do not, they don’t.
William Temple
When our quiet times have become hurried, how can we expect to
give God the adoration that is His due? How can we receive the
guidance that God is waiting to give? How can our hearts catch the
glow of divine fire? How can we have deep fellowship with those
purposes that are really nearest to the heart of God? ( Keswick
1946 ) – Gordon M. Guinness
When prayers are strongest, mercies are nearest. Edward
Reynolds
When the Lord returns, the hidden life and the hidden glory will
become manifest. The Hidden Life, Adolph Saphir
Where there is a willing heart there will be a continual crying to
heaven for help.
John Mason (1646-1694)
When thou prayest, rather let thy heart be without words, than thy
words without heart. - Martin Luther
When we are alone with God we are less alone than any other
time.
When God intends great mercy for His peoples, the first thing He
does is to set them a-praying. Matthew Henry
When we ask of the Lord cooly, and not fervently, we do as it were,
361
stop His hand, and restrain Him from giving us the very blessing we
“pretend” that we are seeking.
C. H. Spurgeon
When we can declare, with St. John, “Yea, and our fellowship is
with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ” (I John 1:3), people
will say the same of us: “They have been with Jesus!” Acts 4:13
The Kneeling Christian
Whenever, in any century, whether in a single heart or in a
company of believers, there has been a fresh effusion of the Spirit,
there has followed inevitably a fresh endeavor in the work of
evangelizing the world.
A. J. Gordon
When we confess that we “never get answers to our prayers,” we
are condemning not God, or His promises, or the power of prayer,
but ourselves. The Kneeling Christian
When we get a glimpse of the worth of a soul, and begin to realize
that we stand between lost men and Heaven or Hell, then we shall
have real concern and the Lord will hear our prayers of
intercession. J. W. Mahood
When we learn to come to God with an intensity of desire that
wrings the soul, then shall we know a power in prayer that most of
us do not know now. R. A. Torrey
When you pray you step into the operation of the Trinity.
Arena of Prayer, Ben Jennings
The
Whether we like it or not, asking is the rule of the Kingdom. If you
may have everything by asking in His Name, and nothing without
asking, I beg you to see how absolutely vital prayer is. C. H.
Spurgeon
Why doesn't God answer prayer. “No true God could promise us
an answer to our every prayer. No Father of mankind could. The
rain that saved my crop might ruin my neighbour's. It would
paralyse prayer to be sure that it would prevail as it is offered,
certainly and at once. We should be terrified at the power put into
362
our foolish hands. Nothing would do more to cure us of a belief in
our own wisdom than the granting of some of our eager prayers.
And nothing could humiliate us more than to have God say when
the fulfilment of our desire brought leanness to our souls. "Well, you
have it." It is what He has said to many. But He said more, ‘My
grace is sufficient for thee.’” The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
Why do we piously favour prayer in general and devilishly resist it in
particular? Ray Stedman
With God’s saints in all ages: nights of prayer with God have been
followed by days of power with men. The Kneeling Christian
Without committal to the wisdom of God, prayer would be a very
dangerous weapon in proportion as it was effective The Soul of
Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
Without its biblical principles being taught, prayer is unstable.
Without our “catching” the principles by applying them to our lives,
it is sterile. The Arena of Prayer, Ben Jennings
Words are but the body, the garment, the outside of prayer; sighs
are nearer the heart work. A dumb beggar getteth an alms at
Christ’s gates, even by making signs, when his tongue cannot
plead for him…Tears have a tongue, and grammar, and language
that our Father knoweth. Babes have no prayer for the breast, but
weeping: the mother can read hunger in weeping. - Samuel
Rutherford
Worship is the greatest act of which man is capable, and that true
worship culminates in the supreme labour, and even sorrow, of real
prayer. The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
Yet prayer is the key which unlocks the door of God's treasurehouse. The Kneeling Christian
You that manifest a concern about religion, why don’t you pray?
Martin Luther
363
You should, in Tertullian’s phrase, with a holy conspiracy, besiege
heaven. Thomas Manton
You know the value of prayer: it is precious beyond all price. Never,
never neglect it.
Sir Thomas Buxton
Your praying is training for reigning with Christ.
Prayer, Ben Jennings
The Arena of
You cannot expect anything from God unless you put yourself in
the right place, that is, as a beggar at his footstool. Then will he
hear you, and not until then.
You can do more than pray, after you have prayed, but you cannot
do more than pray until you have prayed. John Bunyan
You must pray with all your might. That does not mean saying your
prayers, or sitting gazing about in church or chapel with eyes wide
open while someone else says them for you. It means fervent,
effectual, untiring wrestling with God...This kind of prayer be sure
the devil and the world and your own indolent, unbelieving nature
will oppose. They will pour water on this flame. William Booth
You who never know what a groan is, or a falling tear, are destitute
of vital godliness.
You will never be able to pray everywhere all the time, until you
have learned to pray somewhere, some of the time. Prayer Made
Easy Mark Water
364
Chapter Eight: Poems and Songs Concerning Prayer
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
When the goal of the Father
Is the goal of every prayer –
When before the Throne in Heaven
Our High Priest presents if there –
When the Spirit prompts the asking,
When the waiting heart believes –
Then we know of each petition
Everyone who asks receives.
How They Prayed Volume Two, Edwin and Lillian Harvey
All day, perchance, thy feet must tread the valley,
All day, the multitude around may throng—
With claims unceasing, pressing close upon thee,
And voices loud in sorrow, strife, or song,
Before the multitude, before the valley,
Before the toil that binds thee, heart and hand,
Be ready, in the first hour of morning,
High in the mount, alone with God to stand.
What then? O He is waiting there to meet thee—
Himself in strange, sweet beauty to reveal;
Himself with thee alone to hold communion—
To lift thee past earth's shadows to the Real.
E. H. Divall
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A collection of poems to stir the heart of the believer to prayer.
Songs about prayer are especially helpful in a group prayer time.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
365
A Friend's Prayer
God's goodness
Came to me just now on a friend's prayer.
I Clearly knew them both.
Strange!
A prayer (that priceless gift); given me,
Arrives, laden with God.
Are prayers, I wonder,
Empty dishes we present to God
For conveyance of His great goodness?
Why, then, aren't more prayers given?
Why are we stingy with a prayer,
When we need prayer so much ourselves?
Marguerite Estaver Wesleyan Methodist
(How They Prayed Volume Two, Edwin and Lillian Harvey, 49)
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I'm Dreaming of a Revival
Sing this song to the tune of "I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas."
I'm dreaming of a re-vival,
Unlike any seen before
Where churches wake up,
And prayers they take up,
To see God come in His power.
I'm praying for a re-vival,
Where every neighborhood is touched.
May the Lord be gracious and hear,
And bring a revival this year.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
“Let My Prayer Be As Incense.”
Psa 151:2; 5:3
A Godliness which feeds on form,
And lip devotion, barren cheer,
Will satisfy an earthly worm,
Who learns to think and call it prayer;
Contented with the husky part,
366
A moving lip and silent heart.
O Lord, thy Spirit’s aid impart,
And fill me with devotion’s fire;
Create anew my waiting heart,
And heavenly breathings there inspire;
Bid heart and flesh cry out for thee,
And thou my joyful portion be!
Let incense smoking from my breast,
In praise and prayer ascend thy hill;
And where I rove, or where I rest,
Do thou, O God, surround me still;
My heavenly intercourse increase,
Till as a river flows my peace.
A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, William Gadsby, #901
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
I Cannot Pray
Ah dearest Lord! I cannot pray,
My fancy is not free;
Unmannerly distractions come,
And force my thoughts from Thee.
My very flesh has restless fits;
My changeful limbs conspire
With all these phantoms of the mind
My inner self to tire.
I cannot pray; yet, Lord! Thou knowst
The pain it is to me
To have my vainly struggling thoughts
Thus torn away from Thee.
Yet Thou art oft present, Lord!
In weak distracted prayer:
A sinner out of heart with self
Most often finds Thee there.
My Saviour! why should I complain
And why fear aught but sin?
Distractions are but outward things;
367
Thy peace dwells far within.
F. W. Faber
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It came to my heart with a lesson,
As the day was beginning to dawn,
As the day, with its cares and trials
And its blessings, was drawing on,
How Jesus, the world's Redeemer,
Arose, before it was day,
And, feeling His human weakness
Found in secret a place to pray.
Not even the three disciples
Who followed the Lord the best,
Were there in His sanctuary;
They slumbered as did the rest,
And only the stars of heaven
With, perchance, the silvery moon,
Looked down upon their Creator,
Who would suffer and die so soon.
If Jesus, the King of glory,
Commander of hosts on high,
Must petition for daily succor,
What about such a worm as I?
I rest at ease in the morning,
Before me a puzzling day;
I know not how I shall meet it;
But my Savior arose to pray.
How foolish our human blindness!
How hard are our hearts of stone!
Why rise we not in the morning,
And pray to our God alone?
There's help for the daily duties,
And spiritual strength and power,
There's victory for the conflict,
To be gained in the morning hour.
If we walk in the Master's footsteps,
And follow the path He trod,
We must find, in the early morning,
A quite place with God.
368
We must pour out our heart before Him,
And let Him in to the life,
If we ever shall be the winner
Of victory over srife.
Minnie Embree Parker In Biblical Evangelist
(How They Prayed Volume Two, Edwin and Lillian Harvey, p 12)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
In the quite of the dawning, alone with Him I love;
The stillness of His presence, brings perfume from above;
It sweetens all the hours of my coming busy day;
Its fragrance calms my restlessness, and drives my fear away.
I find wondrous strength for duty as I look into His face,
And I know that there is power drawn from this secret place.
J. Charles Stern
(How They Prayed Volume Two, Edwin and Lillian Harvey, p 12)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
“Watch and pray.”
Matt. 26:41; Mark 13:33
Alas, what hourly dangers rise!
What snares best my way!
To heave O let me lift my eyes,
And hourly watch and pray.
How oft my mournful thoughts complain,
And melt in flowing tears!
My weak resistance, ah, how vain!
How strong my foes and fears!
O gracious God, in whom I live,
My feeble efforts aid;
Help me to watch, and pray, and strive,
Though trembling and afraid.
Increase my faith, increase my hope,
When foes and fears prevail!
And bear my fainting spirit up,
Or soon my strength will fail.
369
Whene’er temptations fright my heart,
Or lure my feet aside,
O God, thy powerful aid impart, My guardian and my guide.
O keep me in the heavenly way,
And bid the tempter flee;
And let me never, never stray,
From happiness and thee.
Steele
A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship,
William Gadsby, #1051
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A Little While With Jesus
A little while with Jesus—
Oh, how it soothes the soul,
And gathers all the threads of life
Into a perfect whole.
Prayer, O. Hallesby, p 145
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Approach, My Soul, the Mercy Seat
Approach, my soul, the mercy seat,
Where Jesus answers prayer;
There humbly fall before his feet,
For none can perish there.
Thy promise is my only plea;
With this I venture nigh;
Thou callest burdened souls to thee,
And such, O Lord am I.
Bowed down beneath a load of sin,
By Satan sorely pressed,
By war without and fears within,
I come to thee for rest.
Be thou my shield and hiding place,
370
That, sheltered near thy side,
I may my fierce accuser face,
And tell him thou hast died.
O wondrous love! To bleed and die,
To bear the cross and shame,
That guilty sinners, such as I,
Might plead thy gracious name.
Poor tempest-tossed soul, be still;
My promised grace receive;
I’ll work in thee both power and will;
Thou shalt in me believe.
John Newton 1779; DALEHURST C.M. Arthur Cottman, 1874
A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, William Gadsby, #388
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Are You at Wits End Corner?
Are you standing at “Wits End Corner”
Christian, with troubled brow?
Are you thinking of what is before you,
And all you are bearing now?
Does all the world seem against you,
And you in the battle alone?
Remember at Wits End Corner
Is where God’s power is shown.
Are you standing at “Wits End Corner”
Blinded with wearying pain
Feeling you cannot endure it,
You cannot bear the strain.
Bruised through the constant suffering
Dizzy and dazed, and numb
Remember at Wits End Corner,
Is where Jesus loves to come.
Are you standing at “Wits End Corner”
Your work before you spread.
Or lying begun, unfinished
And pressing on heart and head.
Longing for strength to do it.
371
Stretching out trembling hands
Remember at “Wits End Corner”
The burden bearer stand.
Are you standing at “Wits End Corner”
Yearning for those you love,
Longing and praying and watching,
Pleading their cause above,
Trying to lead them to Jesus
Wondering if you’ve been true?
He whispers at “Wits End Corner”
“I’ll win them as I won you.”
Are you standing at “Wits End Corner”
Then you’re just in the very spot.
To learn the wondrous resources
Of Him who faileth not!
No doubt to a brighter pathway
Your footsteps will soon be moved
But only at Wits End Corner
Is the God who is able, “proved.”
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Arise, my soul arise
Arise, my soul, arise;
Shake off thy guilty fears;
The bleeding sacrifice
In thy behalf appears:
Before the throne my surety stands;
My name is written on his hands.
He ever lives above,
For me to intercede;
His all-redeeming love,
His precious blood to plead;
His blood atoned for all our race,
And sprinkles now the throne of grace.
Five bleeding wounds he bears,
Received on Calvary;
They pour effectual prayers,
They strongly speak for me.
372
Forgive him, O forgive, they cry,
Nor let that ransomed sinner die.
The Father hears him pray—
His dear Anointed One:
He cannot turn away
The presence of his Son;
His Spirit answers to the blood,
And tells me I am born of God.
My God is reconciled,
His pardoning voice I hear;
He owns me for his child,
I can no longer fear:
With confidence I now draw nigh,
And Father, Abba Father, cry.
Charles Wesley
(Prayer and its Remarkable Answers, Patton, p 144)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Jabez’s Prayer
A saint there was in days of old
(Though we but little of him hear)
In honour high, of whom is told
A short, but an effectual prayer.
This prayer, my brethren, let us view,
And try if we can pray so too.
He called on Israel’s God, ’tis said;
Let us take notice first of that;
Had he to any other prayed,
To us it had not mattered what;
For all true Israelites adore
One God, Jehovah, and no more.
“O that thou wouldst me bless indeed,
And that thou wouldst enlarge my bound;
And let thy hand in every need
A guide and help be with me found;
That thou wouldst cause that evil be
No cause of pain and grief to me.”
373
What is it to be blest indeed,
But to have all our sins forgiven;
To be from guilt and terror freed,
Redeemed from hell, and sealed for heaven;
To worship an incarnate God,
And know he saved us by his blood?
And next, to have our cost enlarged
Is, that our hearts extend their plan;
From bondage and from fear discharged,
And filled with love to God and man;
To cast off every narrow thought,
And use the freedom Christ has bought.
To use this liberty aright,
And not the grace of God abuse,
We always need his hand, his might,
Lest what he gives us we should lose;
Spiritual pride would soon creep in,
And turn his very grace to sin.
This prayer, so long ago preferred,
Is left on sacred record thus;
And this good prayer by God was heard,
And kindly handed down to us.
Thus Jabez prayed, for that’s his name.
May all believers pray the same.
Jabez’s Prayer 1 Chr 4:9,10
A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, William Gadsby, #790
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
AWAKE
One man awake, awakens another.
The second awakens his next-door brother.
The three awake can rouse a town,
By turning the whole place upside down.
The many awake can make such a fuss,
It finally awakens the rest of us.
One man up with dawn in his eyes,
374
Surely then multiplies.
Lawrence Tribble, during the Great Awakening
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Count It Done
A father wrote to his son,
Who was faraway from home;
“I have sent you a beautiful gift,
It may be delayed, but ‘twill come;
It is what you have wanted most,
And have asked for many days;”
And before the child received the gift
He voiced his thanks and praise.
Our Father saith unto us:
“Your need shall be supplied;
Ask and receive that your joy be filled,
And My joy in you abide.”
Shall we wait to thank till we see
The answer to every prayer?
Forbear to praise till we feel
The lifted pressure of care?
Nay, let us trust His word
And know that the thing is done,
For His promise is just as sure
As a father’s to his son.
- Annie Johnson Flint
V. Raymond Edman, But God!, (Zondervan Publishing House,
Grand Rapids; 1962), p. 53
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Did You…
Did you meet your Lord this morning
Ere you saw a human face?
Did you look upon His beauty
Through His all-abounding grace?
375
Did you bow in prayer before Him
Ere you went upon your way?
Did you ask for strength to carry
All the burdens of the day?
Did you see His will in reading
From His Holy Word, and take
Of His promises a portion,
Blessed with love, for His Name's sake?
Oh, how weak and worthless are we,
And our spirits quake within
If we fail to meet our Maser
Ere the pathway we begin.
How He waits to give His blessing
On our lives another day!
Chistian, never start without Him;
Let Him speak, and then obey.
Union Gospel Press Publication
(How They Prayed Volume Two, Edwin and Lillian Harvey, p10)
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Prayer Meeting
Ps. 17:1; 32:5,6
Behold, dear Lord, we come again,
To supplicate thy grace;
We feel our leanness and our wants;
We want to see thy face.
Thou know’st, dear Lord, for what we’re come;
Each heart is known to thee.
Lord, give our burdened spirits rest,
And bid us all go free.
We’ve nothing of our own to plead,
We come just as we are;
And who can tell but God may bless,
And drive away our fear?
376
While one is pleading with our God,
May each one wrestle too;
And may we feel the blessing come,
And cheer us ere we go.
Then shall we sing of sovereign grace
And feel its power within;
And glory in our Surety, Christ,
Who bore our curse and sin.
For this we come, for this we plead,
In spite of every foe;
Unto thou give this blessing, Lord,
We would not let thee go.
D. Herbert
A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship,
William Gadsby, #677
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Behold the Throne of Grace!
The Throne of Grace –Heb. 4:16; John 14:13,14
Behold the Throne of Grace!
The promise calls me near;
There Jesus shows his smiling face;
And waits to answer prayer.
That rich atoning blood
Which, sprinkled round, I see,
Provides for those who come to God
An all-prevailing plea.
My soul, ask what thou wilt,
Thou canst not be too bold;
Since his own blood for thee he spilt,
What else can he withhold?
377
Beyond thy utmost wants
His love and power can bless.
To praying souls he always grants
More than they can express.
John Newton, 1779; STATE STREET S.M. Jonathan C. Woodman 1844
A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, William Gadsby, #395
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Two Men Go to Pray
Behold, two men go forth today
Up to the temple shrine to pray.
Is it to pray, or say their prayer,
These twain are found resorting there?
One, robed in broad phylactery,
Nor bends the heart, or yet the knee;
No sense of sin, no weary load.
Boasting, he saith, "I thank Thee, God!
I am no wretched slave of lust,
Nor yet extortionate, unjust;
I fast, and earn a talked-of fame;
I tithe, and. gain a good man's name."
Thus, robed in broad phylactery.
Spake the proud, boastful Pharisee.
—ROBERT MAGUIRE.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Be Not Afraid to Pray
Be not afraid to pray; to pray is right;
378
Pray if thou canst with hope, but ever pray,
Though hope be weak or sick with long delay;
Pray in the darkness if there be no light;
And if for any wish thou dare not pray
Then pray to God to cast that wish away.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Just a Tiny Little Child
Just a tiny little child
Three years old,
And a mother with a heart
All of gold.
Often did that mother say,
Jesus hears us when we pray,
For He’s never far away
And He always answers.
Now, that tiny little child
Had brown eyes,
And she wanted blue instead
Like blue skies.
For her mother’s eyes were blue
Like forget-me-nots. She knew
All her mother said was true,
Jesus always answered.
So she prayed for two blue eyes,
Said “Good night,”
Went to sleep in deep content
And delight.
Woke up early, climbed a chair
By a mirror. Where, O where
Could the blue eyes be? Not there;
Jesus hadn’t answered.
Hadn’t answered her at all;
Never more
Could she pray; her eyes were brown
As before.
Did a little soft wind blow?
379
Came a whisper soft and low,
“Jesus answered. He said, No;
Isn’t No an answer?”
—Amy Carmichael
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
“Lord teach us to pray.”
Luk 11:1
Blessed Jesus, Lord of all,
Teach us on thy name to call;
Help us to be much in prayer,
And upon thee cast our care.
Draw us, Lord, by thy sweet power,
In temptation’s darkest hour;
Make us cry to thee our Friend,
And upon thy grace depend.
At all times, in every case,
Lead us to thy Throne of Grace;
Let our needs be what they may,
Teach us how and what to pray.
Jesus, deign to bless us thus,
And to glory in thy cross;
Then, though men and devils roar,
We will ever thee adore.
A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, William Gadsby, #640
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Blessed Spirit Teach Me How to Pray
The spirit also helpeth our infirmities – Rom 8:26
Blessed Spirit from above,
Teach, O teach me how to pray;
Fill my soul with heavenly love;
Lead me the celestial way.
380
When temptations me surround
Help me, Lord, on thee to call;
When iniquities aboud,
Save, O save me, or I fall.
When thou hidest they lovely face,
Till the cloud is passed away,
And I feel the sweets of peace,
Never let me cease to pray.
When I feel my heart like stone,
When I have no heart to pray,
At thy feet, O God, I’d groan,
“Take this stony heart away.”
Holy Spirit, on me shine;
Make my evidences clear;
Then I’ll say that God is mine!
I shall with the Lord appear!
A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, William Gadsby, #963
7s. Gospel Mag., 1781.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
When Assaulted
Blest, when assaulted by the tempter’s power,
The Cross my armour, and the Lamb my Tower,
Kneeling I triumph--issuing from the fray
A bleeding conqueror--my life a prey.
-Adolphe Monod
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Bow down Thine Ear, O Lord and Hear
Bow down thine ear, O Lord and hear,
for I am poor and great my need;
preserve my soul, for Thee I fear,
O god, thy trusting servant heed.
O Lord, be merciful to me,
381
for all the day to thee I cry;
rejoice thy servant, for to thee
I lift my soul, O Lord Most High.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
O Lord, Incline Thine Ear To Me
For thou, O Lord, art good and kind,
and ready to forgive thou art;
abundant mercy they shall find
who call on thee with all their heart.
O Lord, incline thine ear to me,
my voice of supplication heed;
in trouble I will cry to thee,
for thou wilt answer when I plead.
There is not God but thee alone,
nor works like thine, O Lord Most High;
all nations shall surround thy throne
and their Creator glorify.
In all thy deeds how great thou art!
Thou one true God, thy way make clear;
teach me with undivided heart
to trust thy truth, thy name to fear.
Psalm 86:11-11
The Psalter, 1912; Griffin Hugh Jones, 1849-1919
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Breath on Me
Breathe on me, breathe on me, Holy Spirit, breathe on me:
Take Thou my heart, cleanse every part, Holy Spirit, breathe on
me.
Holy Spirit, breath on me, Until, my heart is clean;
Let Sunshine fill its in most part, With not a cloud between.
Holy Spirit, breath on me, My stubborn will subdue;
382
Teach me in words of living flame, What Christ would have me do.
Holy Spirit, breath on me, Fill me with power divine;
Kindle a flame of love and zeal, Within this heart of mine.
Holy Spirit breath on me, Till I am all Thine own,
Until my will is lost in Thine, To live for Thee alone.
Edwin Hatch 1835-1889
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Can I Have The Things I Pray For
Can I have the things I pray for?
God knows best;
He is wiser than His children.
I can rest.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Lift the heart and bend the knee!
Child, amidst the flowers at play,
While the red light fades away;
Mother, with thine earnest eye, .
Ever following silently;
Father, by the breeze of eve
Called thy harvest work to leave;
Pray, ere yet the dark hours be,
Lift the heart and, bend the knee!
Traveller,, in the stranger's land,
Far from thine own household band;
Mourner, haunted by the tone,
Of a voice from this world gone;
Captive, in whose narrow cell,
Sunshine hath not leave to dwell;
Sailor, on the darkening sea —
Lift the heart and bend the knee!
Mrs Felicia D. Hemans
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
383
Freedom of Access to a Throne of Grace
Heb. 4:16
Come boldly to a throne of Grace,
Ye wretched sinners, come;
And lay your load at Jesus’ feet,
And plead what he has done.
“How can I come?” some soul may say,
“I’m lame, and cannot walk;
My guilt and sin have stopped my mouth;
I sign, but dare not talk.”
Come boldly to the throne of grace,
Though lost, and blind and lame;
Jehovah is the sinner’s Friend,
And ever was the same.
He makes the dead to hear his voice;
He makes the blind to see;
The sinner lost he came to save,
And set the prisoner free.
Come boldly to the throne of gracae,
For Jesus fills the throne;
And those he kills he makes alive;
He hears the sigh or groan.
Poor bankrupt souls, who feel and know
The hell of sin within,
Come boldy to the throne of grace;
The Lord will take you in.
A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, William Gadsby, #675
C.M. D. Herbert
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
“He shall call upon me, I will answer”
Psa 91:15
Come, come, my soul, with boldness come,
Unto the throne of grace;
384
There Jesus sits to answer prayer,
And shows a smiling face.
Our Surety stands before the throne,
And personates our case;
And send the blessed Spirit down
With tokens of his grace.
There’s not a groan, nor wish, nor sigh,
But penetrates his ears;
He know our sins perplex and tease,
And cause our doubts and fears.
But he upholds us with his arm,
And will not let us fall;
When Satan roars, and sin prevails,
He hears our mournful call.
He knows we have no strength at all;
He knows our foes are strong;
But though ten thousand foes engage,
The weakest sha’n’t go wrong.
Then let us all unite and sing
The praises of free grace;
Those souls who long to see him now,
Shall surely see his face.
D. Herbert A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, William
Gadsby, #509
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Come, Holy Spirit, Come
Come, Holy Spirit, come;
Let Thy bright beams arise;
Dispel the darkness from our minds,
And open all our eyes.
Convince us of our sin;
Then lead to Jesus' blood,
And to our wondering view reveal
The secret love of God.
385
“Ask what I shall give thee.” 1 Kings 3:5
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Come, My Soul, Thy Suit Prepare.
Come, my soul, thy suit prepare:
Jesus loves to answer prayer;
He himself has bide thee pray,
Therefore will not say thee, Nay.
Thou art coming to a King,
Large petitions with thee bring;
For his grace and power are such,
None can ever ask too much.
With my burden I begin:
Lord, remove this load of sin;
Let thy blood, for sinners spilt,
Set my conscience free of guilt.
Lord, I come to thee for rest,
Take possession of my breast;
There thy blood-bought right maintain,
And without a rival reign.
As the image in the glass,
Answers the beholder’s face,
Thus unto my heart appear;
Print thy own resemblance there.
While I am a pilgrim here,
Let thy love my spirit cheer;
As my Guide, my Guard, my Friend,
Lead me to my journey’s end.
Show me what I have to do,
Every hour my strength renew:
Let me live a life of faith,
Let me die thy people’s death;
John Newton, 1779; HENDON 7.7.7.7.rep; Henri A Cesar Marlan,
1827
A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, William Gadsby, #379
386
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Come, O Come, Thou Quickening Spirit
Come, O come, thou quick’ning Spirit,
God from all eternity!
May the power never fail us;
dwell within us constantly
Then shall truth and life and light
banish all the gloom of night.
Grant our hearts in fullest measure
wisdom, counsel, purity.
That we ever may be seeking
only that which pleaseth thee.
Let thy knowledge spread and grow,
working error’s overthrown.
Show us, Lord, the path of blessing:
when we trespass on our way,
cast, O Lord, our sins behind thee
and be with us day by day.
Should we stray, O Lord, recall;
work repentance when we fall.
Holy Spirit, strong and mighty,
thou who makest all things new,
make thy work within us perfect
and the evil foe subdue.
Grant us weapons for the strife
and with victory crown our life.
Heinrich Held, ca. 1664; Charles F. Gounod, 1872; Tr. by Charles
W. Schaeffer, 1866; alt; alt. 1961
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Come, O thou Traveler, Unknown
Come, O thou traveler, unknown,
Whom still I hold, but cannot see;
My company before has gone,
387
And I am left alone with thee:
With thee all night I mean to say,
And wrestle till the break of day.
In vain thou strugglest to get free;
I never will unloose my hold:
Art thou the Man that died for me?
The secret of thy love unfold;
Wrestling, I will not let thee go,
‘Till I thy name, thy nature know.
(1 & 3 stanzas Peniel ? ) Charles Wesley
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Come to the morning-prayer
Come to the morning-prayer;
Come, let us kneel and pray:
Prayer is the Christian pilgrim’s staff,
To walk with God all day.
At noon, beneath the Rock
Of Ages, rest and pray;
Sweet is that shelter from the heat,
When the sun smites by day.’
At evening, shut thy door;
Round the; home-altar pray;
And, finding there the house of God,
At Heaven’s gate close the day.
When midnight veils our eyes,
Oh, it is sweet to say,
I sleep, but my heart waketh, Lord,
With thee to watch and pray.
James Montgomery (Quoted in Prayer and its Remarkable
Answers, William Patton p 32)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
388
“Watch and Pray.”
Matt 36:41; Mark 14:38
Dangerous is the path we go,
In this wilderness below,
Savage beasts of every kind,
Aiming to distress the mind.
Scarce an hour but pilgrims see
They from danger are not free;
In some unexpected way,
Something fills them with dismay.
Thus beset, they daily feel
They have neither strength nor skill
Rightly to oppose the foe,
Or to guard against the woe.
How, then, can they persevere?
Must they of the prize despair?
No; ‘tis theirs to watch and pray,
For the Lord will guard the way.
Christ the Master, Lord of all,
Bids his children watch and call;
May it be our blessed case,
Both to watch and seek his face.
When we watch, then may we pray
And in prayer watch every day;
And with pleasure ever prove
All our strength is from above.
Thus supported, we shall be
More than conquerors, Lord through thee;
And when every danger’s past,
Live and reign with thee at last.
A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, William Gadsby, #645
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Day by Day–a Prayer
389
Day by day, day by day, O dear Lord, three things I pray;
To see Thee more clearly, Love Thee more dearly
Follow Thee more nearly, Day by day.
TEXT: St. Richard of Chichester; MUSIC: Ken Barker
Music copyright 1986 WORD MUSIC (a div. Of WORD, INC.) All
Rights Reserved. Internation Copyright Secured (Used by
Permission CCLI #3357343
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Answered Prayers
We know not what we should pray for as we ought - Romans 8:26.
I prayed for strength, and then I lost awhile
All sense of nearness, human and divine;
The love I leaned on failed and pierced my heart;
The hands I clung to loosed themselves from mine;
But while I swayed, weak, trembling, and alone,
The everlasting arms upheld my own.
I prayed for light; the sun went down in clouds,
The moon was darkened by a misty doubt,
The stars of heaven were dimmed by earthly fears,
But all my little candle flames burned out;
But while I sat in shadow, wrapped in night,
The face of Christ made all the darkness bright.
I prayed for peace, and dreamed of restful ease,
A slumber drugged from pain, a hushed repose;
Above my head the skies were black with storm,
And fiercer grew the onslaught of my foes;
But while the battle raged, and wild winds blew,
I heard His voice, and perfect peace I knew.
I thank Thee, Lord, Thou wert too wise to heed
My feeble prayers, and answer as I sought,
Since these rich gifts Thy bounty has bestowed
Have brought me more than I had asked or thought.
Giver of good, so answer each request
With Thine own giving, better than my best.
- Annie Johnson Flint V. Raymond Edman, But God!, (Zondervan
Publishing House, Grand Rapids; 1962)
390
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Throne of Grace
Heb 4:16, 10:19-22
Dear Lord! to us assembled here
Reveal thy smiling face,
While we, by faith, with love and fear,
Approach the throne of grace.
Thy house is called the house of prayer,
A solemn sacred place;
O let us now thy presence share,
While at the throne of grace.
With holy boldness may we come,
Though of sinful race,
Thankful to find there yet is room
Before the throne of grace.
Our earnest, fervent cry attend,
And all our faith increase,
While we address our heavenly Friend
Upon the throne of grace.
His tender pity and his love
Our every fear will chase;
And all our help, we then shall prove,
Comes from the throne of grace.
Dear Lord, our many wants supply;
Attend to every case;
While humbled in the dust we lie,
Low at the throne of grace.
We bless thee for thy word and laws;
We bless thee for thy peace;
And we do bless thee, Lord, because
There is a throne of grace.
A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, William Gadsby, #382
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
391
Dear Saviour Thou Art Mine
Dear Saviour, Thou art mine,
How sweet the thought to me,
Let me repeat thy name,
And lift my heart to thee.
Mine, mine, mine
I know thou art mine
Saviour, dear Saviour,
I know thou art mine.
Thou art the sinner’s friend,
So I thy friendship claim,
A sinner saved by grace,
When thy sweet message came
Mine, mine, mine
I know Thou art mine,
Saviour, dear Saviour,
I know thou art mine.
Dear Heavenly Father,
Let me sing thy praise,
And let me call thee mine,
I cannot help thy Word,
I know Thou art mine.
Mine, mine, mine
I know Thou art mine,
Saviour, dear Saviour,
I know thou art mine.
Recorded by George Beverly Shea
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Deep In Unfathomable Mines
Deep in unfathomable mines
Of never-failing skill
He treasures up His bright designs,
And works His sovereign will.
392
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Early in the Morning
Recorded by George Beverly Shea
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Family Altar In Our Home
The family altar in our home
Holds such a beauty rare;
Among the treasures of this life
There’s none that can compare.
’Tis just about the evening hour
When day has spent itself
That Dad takes down the Bible
From its place upon the shelf.
We read the Word together and
We bow at Jesus’ feet;
How precious is that fellowship!
It makes our day complete!
And all the burdens we possess
Are swallowed up in prayer;
The sweetness of this time with God
Reveals His love and care.
A family altar in the home!
How blessed and how true
That if we put God first—He’ll bless!
We hope you have one too!
—Georgia B. Adams
WORDseach Program
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Faith Cries, It Shall Be Done
Faith asks no signal from the skies,
To show that prayers accepted rise,
393
Our Priest is in His holy place,
And answers from the throne of grace.
Faith, mighty faith the promise sees,
And Looks to God alone;
Laughs at impossibilities,
And cries, It shall be done!
C. Wesley
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Father, I Stretch My Hands To Thee
Father, I stretch my hands to Thee,
No other help I know;
If Thou withdraw Thyself from me,
Ah! Whither shall I go?
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Golden Key
For if thou not to Him aspire,
But to His gifts alone;
Not love, but covetous desire,
Doth bring thee to His throne;
While such thy prayer, it climbs above
In vain; the golden key
Of God's rich treasure-house of love
Thine own will never be.
Selected
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
For What Are Men Better
For what are men better than sheep or goats
That nourish a blind life within the brain,
If, knowing God, they lift not hands of prayer
Both for themselves and those who call them friend?
For so the whole round world is every way
394
Bound by gold chains about the feet of God.
How Can God Answer Prayer?, William Edward Biederwolf, p 19
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
From Every Stormy Wind That Blows
From every stormy wind that blows,
from every swelling tide of woes,
There is a calm, a sure retreat:
‘Tis found beneath the mercy seat.
There is a place where Jesus sheds
the oil of gladness on our heads,
A place than all besides more sweet;
it is the bloodstained mercy seat.
There is a spot where spirits blend,
where friend holds fellowship with friend.
Tho’ sundered far; by faith they meet
around the common mercy seat.
Ah, whither could we flee for aid,
when tempted, desolate, dismayed,
Or how the hosts of hell defeat,
had suffering saints no mercy seat.
There, there on eagle wings we soar
and time and sense seem all not more,
and heav’n comes down our souls to greet,
and glory crowns the mercy seat.
O may my hand forget her skill,
my tongue be silent, cold and still,
this bounding heart forget to beat,
if I forget the mercy seat.
Hugh Stowell, 1828, 1831; Thomas Hastings, 1842, arr. By Rhys
Thomas, 1916
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
395
Gird Thy Heavenly Armour On
Gird thy heavenly armour on,
Wear it ever night and day,
Ambushed lies the evil one,
Watch and pray.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Give Me A Voice
Give me a voice, a cry and a complaining,—
Oh, let my prayer be stormy in their ears!
Throat that would shout, but cannot stay for straining,
Eyes that would weep, but cannot wait for tears!
Whoso hast felt the Spirit of the Highest
Cannot confound nor doubt Him nor deny;
Yea, with one voice, O world, though thou deniest,
Stand thou on that side, for on this am I!
—F. W. H. MYERS, in Saint Paul.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Behold the House of God
God dwells not only where, O’er saintly dust,
The Sweet bells greet the fairest morn of seven;
Wherever simple folk love, pray and trust,
Behold the House of God, the Gate of Heaven.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
God Moves In A Mysterious Way
God moves in a mysterious way
His wonders to perform;
He plants His footsteps in the sea,
And rides upon the storm.
396
Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take;
The clouds ye so much dread
Are filled with mercies, and shall break
In blessings ’round thy head.
God nothing does nor suffers to be done
But thou would’st do thyself
Could’st thou but see
The end of all events as well as He.
Grace and glory flow from Thee;
Shower, O shower them, Lord, on me.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
For Whom The Lord Vouchsafes To Plead.
Is any among you afflicted, let him pray. Jam 5:13
God of my life, to thee I call;
Afflicted at thy feet I fall;
When the great water-floods prevail,
Leave not my trembling heart to fail.
Friend of the friendless and the faint,
Where should I lodge my deep complaint?
Where but with thee, whose open door
Invites the helpless and the poor?
Did ever mourner plead with thee,
And thou refuse that mourner’s plea?
Does not the word still fixed remain,
That none shall seek thy face in vain?
That were a grief I count not bear,
Didst thou not hear and answer prayer;
But a prayer-hearing, answering God
Supports me under every load.
Poor though I am, despised, forgot,
Yet God, my God, forgets me not;
And he is safe, and must succeed,
For whom the Lord vouchsafes to plead.
397
Cowper
A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship,
William Gadsby, #967
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Great Advocate
Great Advocate! Almighty Friend!
On Thee our humble hopes depend;
Our cause can never, never fail
For Thou dost plead and must prevail.
From All the Prayers of the Bible Herbert Lockyer p
174
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Have Thine Own Way
Recorded by George Beverly Shea
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
In The Fashion Best For Me
He answered prayer–not in the way I sought
Nor in the way that I had thought He ought;
But in His own good way; and I could see
He answered in the fashion best for me.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
He Asked For Strength
He asked for strength that he might achieve:
he was made weak that he might obey.
He asked for health that he might do greater things;
he was given infirmity that he might do better things.
He asked for riches that he might be happy;
he was given weakness that he might feel the need of God.
He asked for all things that he might enjoy life;
398
he was given life that he might enjoy all things.
He has received nothing that he asked for, all that he hoped for;
he prayer is answered.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
He Prayed
He prayed upon the mountain,
He prayed for you and me,
He prayed in humble dwellings,
He prayed beside the sea.
He prayed in early morning,
Prayed with all His might,
He prayed at noonday and at dusk,
He prayed all thro’ the night.
He prayed for those who scorned Him,
For those who killed Him, too,
He prayed, “Father forgive them:
They know not what they do.”
He prayed when He was lonely,
He prayed when He was sad,
He prayed when He was weary,
He prayed when He was glad.
He prayed for those in sorrow,
He prayed for those in sin,
He prayed for those in trouble
That they might come to Him
D.W.L.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
He Prayeth Best Who Loveth Best
He prayeth best who loveth best
All things both great and small;
For the great God Who loveth us,
He made and loveth all.
399
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
High Priest of the Church Dispensation
High Priest of the Church Dispensation,
Lift up, we pray, Thy pierced hand,
And bless Thy ransomed congregation
In every place, by sea and land.
Before Thy Father’s face remember
By name each individual member;
Thy face now on us shine,
Grant us Thy peace divine;
For we are thine.
(Moravian Hymn)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
His Promise
His promise is our only plea,
With this we venture nigh.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
How Oft He Sought
How oft He sought the mountain top, and knelt upon its crest,
To pray, and lay His weary Head upon His Father’s breast.
Before he called the Twelve to Him, He prayed all night alone,
And when the day began to dawn, He chose them for His own.
Great Commission Prayer League
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Prayer Answered By Crosses.
Psa 65:5, Act 14:22
I asked the Lord that I might grow
In faith, and love, and every grace;
400
Might more of his salvation know,
And seek more earnestly his face.
[’Twas he who taught me thus to pray,
And he, I trust, has answered prayer;
But it has been in such a way
As almost drove me to despair.]
I hoped that in some favoured hour,
At once he’d answer my request;
And, by his love’s constraining power,
Subdue my sins and give me rest.
Instead of this, he made me feel
The hidden evils of my heart,
And let the angry powers of hell
Assault my soul in every part.
Yea, more, his own hand he seemed
Intent to aggravate my woe;
Crossed all the fair design I schemed,
Blasted my gourds, and laid me low.
“Lord, why is this?” I trembling cried;
“Wilt thou pursue thy worm to death?”
“’Tis in this way,” the Lord replied,
“I answer prayer for grace and faith.”
“These inward trials I employ,
From self and pride to set thee free;
And break thy schemes of earthly joy,
That thou mayst seek thy all in me!”
Newton A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, William Gadsby,
#295
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
“I will not let thee go.”
Gen 32:26; Son 3:4
Shepherd divine, our wants relieve
In this our evil day;
To all thy tempted followers give
The power to trust and pray.
401
Long as our fiery trials last,
Long as the cross we bear;
O let our souls on thee be cast,
In never-ceasing prayer.
Til Thou the Father’s love impart,
Till thou thyself bestow,
Be this the cry of every heart,
“I will not let thee go.
“I will not let thee go, unless
Thou tell thy name to me;
With all they great salvation bless,
and say, ‘Christ died for thee.’ ”
A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, William Gadsby, #1088 C.M.
C.W
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
I CANNOT PRAY
I cannot say OUR if my religion has no room for others and their
needs.
I cannot say FATHER if I do not demonstrate this relationship in my
daily living.
I cannot say WHO ART IN HEAVEN if all my interests and pursuits
are in earthly things.
I cannot say HALLOWED BY MY NAME if I, who am called to bear
His Name, am not holy.
I cannot say THY KINGDOM COME if I am unwilling to give up my
own sovereignty and accept the righteous reign of God.
I cannot say ON EARTH AS IT IS IN HEAVEN unless I am truly
ready to give myself to His service here and now.
I cannot say GIVE US THIS DAY OUR DAILY BREAD without
expending honest effort for it, or by ignoring the genuine needs of
others.
402
I cannot say FORGIVE US OUR TRESPASSES AS WE FORGIVE
THOSE WHO TRESPASS AGAINST US if I continue to harbor a
grudge against anyone.
I cannot say LEAD US NOT INTO TEMPTATION if I deliberately
choose to remain in a situation where I am likely to be tempted.
I cannot say DELIVER US FROM EVIL if I am not prepared to fight
in the spiritual realm with the weapon of prayer.
I cannot say THINE IS THE KINGDOM if I do not give the King the
disciplined obedience of a loyal subject.
I cannot say THINE IS THE POWER if I fear what my neighbors
and friends may say or do.
I cannot say THINE IS THE GLORY if I am seeking my own glory
first.
I cannot say FOREVER if I am too anxious about each day’s
events.
I cannot say AMEN unless I honestly say “Cost what it may, This is
my prayer.”
Source unknown
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Blessing Will Not Fail.
If when I kneel to pray,
With eager lips I say;
‘Lord, give me all the things that I desire;
Health, wealth, fame, friends, brave hearts, religious fire,
The power to sway my fellow-men at will,
And strength for mighty works to banish ill;’
In such a prayer as this,
The blessing I must miss.
Or if I only dare
To raise this fainting prayer:
‘Thou seest, Lord, that I am poor and weak,
And cannot tell what things I ought to seek;
403
I therefore do not ask at all, but still
I trust Thy bounty all my wants to fill;’
My lips shall thus grow dumb,
The blessing will not come.
But if I lowly fall,
And thus in faith I call;
‘Through Christ, O Lord, I pray Thee give to me,
Not what I would, but what seems best Thee,
Of life, of health, of service, and of strength,
Until to Thy full joy I come at length;’
My prayer shall then avail,
The blessing will not fail.
Life Abiding and Abounding, W.H. Griffith Thomas, p 63
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
I Will Live The Way I Pray
I knelt to pray when day was done,
and prayed, "O Lord, bless everyone;
Lift from each saddened heart the pain,
and let the sick be well again."
And then I awoke another day,
and carelessly went on my way.
The whole day long I did not try
to wipe the tear from any eye;
I did not try to share the load
of anybody on the road;
I did not even go to see
the sick man just next door to me.
But once again, when day was done,
I prayed, "O Lord, bless everyone...."
But as I prayed, into my ear
there came a voice that whispered clear,
404
"Pause just now, before you pray;
Whom have you tried to bless today?
God's sweetest blessings always go
to hands that serve Him here below."
And then I hid my face and cried,
"Forgive me, God, for I have lied.
Let me but see another day,
and I will live the way I pray."
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
I Traveled on My Knees
Last night I took a journey
to a land across the sea,
I did not go by boat or plane,
I traveled on my knees.
I saw many people there in deep sin,
and I did not want to send my prayers in.
But Jesus said I should go and see,
how many I could win.
I said, "Jesus, I cannot go and work with such as these."
He answered quickly, "Yes, you can by traveling on your knees."
He said, "You pray, I will meet the need.
You call and I will hear."
So I knelt in prayer and felt at ease
as I traveled on my knees.
I said, "Yes, Lord. I know I can do the job,
and my desire is to please.
I will heed Your call," and I traveled on my knees.
The Power of Prayer.
Ps.1:15, Jas. 5:16-18
In themselves as weak as worms,
How can poor believers stand,
405
When temptations, foes, and storms,
Press them close on every hand?
Weak, indeed, they feel they are,
But they know the Throne of Grace;
And the God who answers prayer,
Helps them when they seek his face.
Though the Lord awhile delay,
Succour they at length obtain;
He who taught their hearts to pray,
Will not let them cry in vain.
Wrestling prayer can wonders do;
Bring relief in deepest straits!
Prayer can force a passage through
Iron bars and brazen gates.
For the wonders he has wrought,
Let us now our praises give;
And, but sweet experience taught,
Call upon him while we live.
Newton
A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, William
Gadsby, #397
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Insincere Prayer
I often say my prayers, but do I ever pray?
And do the wishes of my heart, go with the words I say?
I might as well kneel down, and worship gods of stone,
As offer to the living God, a prayer of words alone.
For words without the heart, The Lord will never hear;
Nor will He to those lips attend, Whose prayers are not sincere.
John Burton
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
406
The Shutting Of The Door
I need not leave the jostling world,
Or wait till daily tasks are o’er,
To fold my palms in secret prayer
Within the close-shut closet door.
There is a viewless, cloistered room,
As high as heaven, as fair as day,
Where, though my feet may join the throng,
My soul can enter in and pray.
And never through those crystal walls
The clash of life can pierce its way,
Nor ever can a human ear
Drink in the spirit-words I say.
One hearkening, even, cannot know
When I have crossed the threshold o’er;
For He alone, Who hears my prayer,
Has heard the shutting of the door.
Life Abiding and Abounding, W.H. Griffith Thomas, p 59
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
I Pray For Strength
I pray for strength, O God!
Too bear all loads that on my shoulders press
Of thy directing or Thy chastening rod,
Lest from their growing stress
My spirit sink in utter helplessness.
I pray for strength to run
In duty’s narrowest paths, nor turn aside
In broader ways that glow in pleasure’s sun,
Lest I grow satisfied,
Where Thou from me Thy smiling face must hide.
I pray for strength to wait
Submissively when I can not see my way,
Or if my feet would haste, some close-barred gate
Bides my hof seal delay,
407
Or to some by-path turns their steps astray.
I pray for strength to live
To all life’s noble ends, prompt, just and true;
Myself, my service, unto all give,
And, giving, yet renew
My store for bounty of life’s Journey through.
I pray, O God, for strength,
When, as life’s love and labors find surcease,
Cares, crosses, burdens to lay down at length,
And so, wite joy’s increase,
To die, If not in triumph--in Thy peace.
How Can God Answer Prayer?, William Edward Biederwolf, p 33
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
In Even Savage Bosoms
In even savage bosoms
There are longings, servings, yearnings
For the good they comprehend not.
And their feeble hands and helpless.
Groping blindly in the darkness,
Touch God’s right hand in the darkness,
And are lifted up and strengthened.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
In Solitude with God
by Anas tasia I. Burr
To the solitude of prayer
God invites His child alone;
He delights when you, with meekness
And by faith, approach His throne.
In the solitude of prayer,
That communion of love;
God reveals His glorious secrets
Planned for you in heaven above.
To the solitude of prayer
408
You must go yourself to hide;
Then in peace and joy and gladness
Will your heart for sure abide.
In the solitude of prayer
Pray the Scriptures to the Lord;
So you’ll always be victorious
Through His own two-edged sword.
Through the Scriptures in your praying
And His Spirit in your heart,
He will always show His pathways
And His mighty strength impart.
‘Tis in quietness and prayer
You will hear His gentle voice;
Thus when flesh and Satan whisper
You shall make the godly choice.
In the solitude of prayer
On your soul He sheds His light;
Then you walk with deep assurance
In the day and in the night.
Go in solitude for prayer,
Daily meet the Lord most high;
When you frequent this His dwelling
You shall know He’s always nigh.
Developing your Secret Closet of Prayer, Richard A. Burr, p viii
Where’er Thy People Meet
Jesus, where’er thy people meet,
There they behold thy mercy-seat;
Wherer’er they seek thee thou art found,
And every place is hallowed ground.
For thou, within no walls confined,
Inhabitest the humble mind;
Such ever bring thee where they come,
And going, take thee to their home.
Dear Shepherd of thy chosen few,
Thy former mercies here renew;
409
Here to our waiting hearts proclaim
The sweetness of thy saving name.
Here may we prove the power of prayer
To strengthen faith, and sweeten care;
To teach our faint desires to rise,
And bring all heaven before our eyes.
A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, William Gadsby, #1023
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
In Very Love Refuse
In very love refuse
Whate’er Thou seest
Our weakness would abuse.
For Thee Alone
Less than Thyself will not suffice
My comfort to restore.
A sense of Thine expiring love
Into my soul convey;
Thyself bestow; for Thee alone
I absolutely pray.
Let Us Adore Him
Lips cry “God be merciful”
That ne’er cry “God be praised.”
O come let us adore Him!
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Looking Upwards In A Storm
God of my life, to Thee I call,
Afflicted at Thy feet I fall;
When the great water-floods prevail,
Leave not my trembling heart to fail!
410
Friend of the friendless and the faint,
Where should I lodge my deep complaint,
Where but with Thee, whose open door
Invites the helpless and the poor!
Did ever mourner plead with Thee,
And Thou refuse that mourner’s plea?
Does not the word still fix’d remain,
That none shall seek Thy face in vain?
That were a grief I could not bear,
Didst Thou not hear and answer prayer;
But a prayer-hearing, answering God
Supports me under every load.
Fair is the lot that’s cast for me;
I have an Advocate with Thee;
They whom the world caresses most
Have no such privilege to boast.
Poor though I am, despised, forgot,
Yet God, my God, forgets me not:
And he is safe, and must succeed,
For whom the Lord vouchsafes to plead.
Olney Hymns, William Cowper, from Cowper’s Poems, Sheldon &
Company, New York
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
From Day To Day
Lord, help me live from day to day
In such a self-forgetful way,
That even when I kneel to pray,
My prayer shall be for others.
–Charles Delucena Meigs
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Lord, I have Shut the Door
Lord, I have shut the door, Here do I bow;
Speak, for my soul attend Turns to Thee now.
Rebuke Thou what is vain, Counsel my Soul,
411
Thy holy will reveal, My will control.
In this blest quietness clamorings cease;
Here in Thy presence dwells Infinite peace;
Yonder, the strife and cry, Yonder the sin;
Lord, I have shut the door, Thou art within!
Lord, I have shut the door, Strengthen my heart;
Yonder awaits the task - I share a part.
Only through grace bestowed May I be true;
Here, while alone with Thee, My strength renew.
By William M. Runyan, Copyright 1923. Renewal 1951 extended.
Hope Publishing Co., owner. All rights reserved.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
I Will Not Let The Go
Lord, I have wrestled through the livelong night
Do no depart,
Nor leave me thus in sad and weary plight,
Broken in heart;
Where shall I turn, if Thou shouldst go away,
And leave me here in this cold world to stay?
I have no other help, no food, no light
No hand to guide,
The night is dark, my home is not in sight,
The path untried;
I dare not venture in the dark alone–
I cannot find my way, if Thou be gone.
I cannot yet discern Thee, as thou art;
More let me see,
I cannot bear the thought that I must pass
Away from Thee:
I will not let The go, except Thou bless.
O, help me, Lord, in all my helplessness.
J. Sharp Gen 32
412
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Heal my soul.
Ps 41:4, 6:2 Jer 17:14
Load, I approach thy throne of grace,
Where mercy does abound,
Desiring mercy for my sin,
To heal my soul’s deep wound.
O Lord, I need not to repeat
What I would humbly crave,
For thou dost know, before I ask,
The thing that I would have.
Mercy, good Lord, mercy I ask;
This is the total sum;
For mercy, Lord, is all my suit;
O let thy mercy come.
A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, William Gadsby, #1009
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Lord, For The Lonely Heart
Lord, for the lonely heart
I pray apart.
Now, for this son of sorrow
Whom this to-morrow
Rejoiceth not, O Lord,
Hear my weak word.
For lives too bitter to be borne,
For the tempted and the torn,
For the prisoner in the cell,
For the shame lip doth not tell,
For the haggard suicide,
Peace, peace, this Christmastide.
In the desert, trod
By the long sick, O God;
Into the patient gloom
413
Of that small room
Where lies the child of pain
Of all neglected most—be fain
To enter, healing, and remain.
Now at the fall of day,
I bow and pray,
For those who cannot sleep
I watch I keep.
Oh, let the starving brain
Be fed and fed again;
At Thy behest
The tortured nerve find rest.
I see the vacant chair,
Father of souls, prepare
My poor thought’s feeble power
To plead this hour:
For the empty, aching home,
Where the silent footsteps come,
Where the unseen face looks on.
Where the hand-clasp is not felt,
Where the dearest eyes are gone,
Where the portrait on the wall
Stirs and struggles as to speak,
Where the light breath from the hall
Calls the colour to the check,
Where the voice breaks in the hymn
When the sunset burneth dim,
Where the late large tear will start,
Frozen by the broken heart,
Where the lesson is to learn
How to live, to grieve, to yearn,
How to bear and how to bow.
Oh, the Christmas that is fled!
Lord of living and of dead,
Comfort Thou!
Life Abiding and Abounding, W.H. Griffith Thomas, p 57
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
414
Lord, I Cannot Let Thee Go
Lord, I cannot let Thee go,
Till a blessing Thou bestow;
Do not turn away Thy face;
Mine’s an urgent, pressing case.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Lord, I Have Shut My Door!
Lord, I have shut my door!
Come Thou and visit me; I am alone!
Come, as when doors were shut, Thou cam’st of yore,
And visitedst Thine own.
My Lord, I kneel with reverent love and fear,
For Thou art here.
Life Abiding and Abounding, W.H. Griffith Thomas, p 67
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Lord, I Have Shut The Door
Lord, I have shut the door, speak now the word
Which in the din and throng could not be heard
Hushed now my inner heart, whisper thy will
While I have come apart, while all is still.
–William Runyan
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Lord, Listen to Your Children
Lord, listen to your children praying,
Lord, send your Spirit in this place;
Lord, listen to your children praying,
Send us love, send us pow’r, send us grace.
Some-thing’s gonna happen like the world has never known,
415
When the people of the Lord get down to pray;
A door's gon-na swing open, and the walls come a tumbling down,
When the people of the Lord get down to pray.
He’s gon-na take over, He’s gon-na take control,
When the people of the Lord get down to pray;
He’s gon-na move the mountain He’s gon-na make the waters roll,
When the people of the Lord get down to pray.
You’re gon-na know it when the Lord stretches out His hand,
When the people of the Lord get down to pray;
There’s gon’na be a brand new song of vic-try in this land,
When the people of the Lord get down to pray.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Lord of the Sabbath, Hear Us Pray
Lord of the Sabbath, hear us pray,
in this your house, on this your day;
and own, as grateful sacrifice,
the songs which from your temple rise.
Now met to pray and bless your name,
whose mercies flow each day the same,
whose kind compassions never cease,
we seek instruction, pardon, peace.
Your earthly Sabbaths, Lord we love,
But there’s a nobler rest above;
To that our lab’ring souls aspire
with ardent hope and strong desire.
In your blest kingdom we shall be
from every mortal trouble free;
no sighs shall mingle with the songs
resounding from immortal tongues;
No rude alarms of raging foes;
no cares to break the long repose;
no midnight shade, no waning moon,
but sacred, high, eternal noon.
O long-expected day, begin
416
dawn on these realms of woe and sin!
Break, morn of God, upon our eyes;
and let the world’s true Sun arise.
Philip Doddridge, 1737
Alt. By Thomas Cotterill, 1819, and others; mod.
Germany L.M., William Gardiner’s Sacred Melodies, 1815
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
What a Change Within One Short Hour
Lord, what a change within us one short hour
Spent in Thy presence will prevail to make!
What heavy burdens from our bosoms take,
What parched grounds refresh, as with a shower!
We kneel, and all around us seems to lower;
We rise, and all the distant and the near
Stands forth in sunny outline, brave and clear.
We kneel, how weak! we rise, how full of power!
Why, therefore, should we do ourselves this wrong,
r others, that we are not always strong,
That we are ever overborne with care,
That we should ever weak or heartless be,
Anxious or troubled, when with us is prayer,
And joy, and strength, and courage are with Thee?
R. C. Trench
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Love Thy God, And Love Him Only
Love thy God, and love Him only,
And thy breast will ne’er be lonely.
In that one great Spirit meet
All things mighty, grave, and sweet.
Vainly strives the soul to mingle
With a being of our kind;
Vainly hearts with hearts are twined,
For the deepest still is single.
An inpalpable resistance
417
Holds like natures at a distance.
Mortal! love that Holy One,
Or dwell for aye alone.
Aubrey De Vere.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Make deaf my ears to slander that is told
Make deaf my ears to slander that is told:
Silence my tongue to aught that is unkind;
Let only thoughts that bless dwell in my mind.
Let me so kindly be, so full of cheer,
That all I meet may feel Thy presence here.
O clothe me in Thy beauty, this I pray,
Let me reveal Thee, Lord, through all the day.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
More Love to Thee, O Christ
More love to thee, O Christ,
More love to thee!
Hear thou the prayer I make
On bended knee;
This is my earnest plea,
More love, O Christ, to thee,
More love to Thee
More love Thee
Once earthly joy I craved,
Sought peace and rest;
Now Thee alone I seek’
Give what is best;
This all my prayer shall be,
More love, O Christ to thee,
More love to Thee,
More love to Thee
Let sorrow do its work,
Send grief and pain;
418
Sweet are the messengers,
Sweet their refrain,
When they can sing with me,
More love, O Christ, to Thee,
More love to Thee,
More love to Thee
Then shall my latest breath
Whisper thy praise;
This be the parting cry,
My heart shall raise,
This still its prayer shall be,
More love, O Christ to Thee,
More love to Thee,
More love to Thee.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
"More prayer!"
"More ships!" some cry, "more guns!"
"More fighters in the air!"
But, wise the king who adds,
"More prayer!"
Remember, angels use
This ancient thoroughfare;
So keep their highway clear—
"More prayer!"
One day will not suffice
To meet time's wear and tear,
Each hour of life must see
"More prayer!"
Again and again,
The scrolls of God declare:
"The deepest need of men—
"More prayer!"
Unknown
(How They Prayed Volume Two, Edwin and Lillian Harvey, p 58)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
419
My Burdens
Lord, I’m so discouraged
I don’t know what to do
I have so many burdens
And I gave them all to you.
But you didn’t take them Jesus
Will you tell me why that’s so?
The answer’s simply little one
Because you won’t let go.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
“My house is the house of prayer,”
Luke 19:16
My bosom was designed to be
A house of prayer, O Lord, for thee.
A temple undefiled;
But vile outrageous thieves broke in,
And turned the house into a den,
And all its glory spoiled.
There anger lies, and lust, and pride,
And envy base its head will hide,
And malice brooding ill;
There unbelief the Lord denies,
And falsehood wispers out its lies,
And avarice gripeth still.
Thy help, Almighty Lord, impart,
And drag the tyrants from my heart,
And chase the thieves away;
Within my bosom fix thy throne,
And there be loved and served alone,
And teach me how to pray.
The work is thine to cleanse the place;
I can but look up for thy grace,
Nor this without thy aid;
Then let thy indignation burn,
And all thy foes o’erturn, o’erturn,
And rear again my head.
420
A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, William Gadsby, #903
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
My God. how wonderful Thou art!
Thy majesty how bright.
How beautiful Thy mercy-seat
In depths of burning light!
How wonderful, how beautiful
The sight of Thee must be;
Thine endless wisdom, boundless power
And awful purity.
This carries us into the very heavenlies, as also do the words:
Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty,
All Thy works shall praise Thy name
In earth, and sky, and sea.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Is Any Hour So Sweet
My God! Is any hour so sweet,
From blush of morn to evening star,
As that which calls me to Thy feet-The Hour of Prayer?
Lord, till I reach yon blissful shore,
No privilege so dear shall be
And thus my inmost soul to pour
In prayer to Thee!
How Can God Answer Prayer?, William
Edward Biederwolf, p 15
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
My heart now overflows
With prayers and praises.
My Heavenly Father knows
Each sigh that raises
My heart ever nearer His heart so tender;
For there’s my joy and peace;
In Thee I’ve found release,
421
My soul’s Defender.
Prayer, O. Hallesby, p 176
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
My Inmost Soul, O Lord, To Thee
My inmost soul, O Lord, to Thee
Leans like a growing flower
Unto the light; I do not know
The day nor blessed hour
When that deep-rooted, daring growth
We call the heart’s desire
Shalt burst and blossom to a prayer
Within the sacred fire
Of Thy great patience; grow so pure,
So still, so sweet a thing
As perfect prayer must surely be.
And yet my heart will sing
Because Thou seemst sometimes so near.
Close-present God! To me,
It seems I could not have a wish
That was not shared by Thee;
It seems I cannot be afraid
To speak my longings out,
So tenderly Thy gathering love
Enfolds me round about;
It seems as if my heart would break,
If, living on the light,
It should not lift to Thee at last
A bud of flawless white.
And yet, O helpless heart! How sweet
To grow, and bud, and say:
‘The flower, however marred or wan,
Shall not be cast away.’
Life Abiding and Abounding, W.H. Griffith Thomas, p 75
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Encouragement To Pray
Isa 45:19-25; Psa 9:10
My soul, take courage from the Lord;
422
Believe and plead his holy word;
To him alone do thou complain,
Nor shalt thou seek his face in vain.
Upon him call in humble prayer,
Thou still art his peculiar care;
She’ll surely turn and smile again,
Nor shalt thou seek his face in vain.
However sinful, weak, and poor,
Still wait and pray at mercy’s door;
Faithful Jehovah must remain,
Nor shalt thou seek his face in vain..
Though the vile tempter’s hellish rage
WiII, with his darts, thy soul engage,
God through the fight shall thee sustain,
Nor shalt thou seek his face in vain .
Though the corruptions of thy heart
Daily new cause of grief impact,.
Pray that thy lust may all be slain,
Nor shalt thou seek his face in vain.
Though sharp afflictions still abound,
And clouds and darkness thee surround,
Still pray, for God will all explain,
Nor shalt thou seek his face in vain.
In him, and him alone, confide;
Still at the throne of grace abide;
Eternal victory thou shalt gain,
Nor shalt thou seek his face in vain.
A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, William Gadsby, #377
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
No time to pray!
No time to pray!
O, who so fraught with earthly care
As not to give a humble prayer
Some part of day!
423
No time to pray!
What heart so clean, so pure within,
That needeth not some check from sin.
Needs not to pray?
No time to pray?
‘Mid each day’s dangers, what retreat
More needful than the mercy seat?
Who need not pray?
No time to pray!
Must care or business’ urgent call
So press us as to take it all,
Each passing day?
What thought more drear
Than that our God His face should hide,
And say, through all life’s swelling tide,
No time to hear!
Anonymous
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Not only wait, but watch;
Pray at the door of hope, and sing,
Faith’s finger on the latch.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Obituary Of Mrs. Prayer Meeting
We note in the Free Will Echo that Mrs. Prayer Meeting is dead.
In the belief that friends of the deceased might be interested, we
reprint the death notice:
“Mrs. Prayer Meeting died recently at the First Neglected
Church, on Worldly Ave.
“Born many years ago in the midst of great revivals, she was a
strong healthy child, fed largely on testimony and Bible study, soon
growing into worldwide prominence, and was one of the most
influential members of the famous Church family.
“For the past several years Sister Prayer Meeting has been
failing in health, gradually wasting away until rendered helpless by
stiffness of knees, coldness of heart, inactivity, weakness of
purpose and will power. At the last she was not a shadow of her
424
former happy self. Her last whispered words were inquiries
concerning the strange absence of her loved ones now busy in the
marts of trade and places of worldly amusements.
“Experts, including Dr. Works, Dr. Reform, and Dr. Joiner,
disagreed as to the cause of her fatal illness, administering large
doses of organizations, socials, contests, and drives, but to no
avail.
“A post mortem showed that a deficiency of spiritual food,
coupled with the lack of faith, heartfelt religion, and general support,
were contributing causes. Only a few were present at her death,
sobbing over memories of her past beauty and power.
“In honor of her going, the church doors will be closed on
Wednesday nights, save the third Wednesday night of each month,
when the Ladies Pink Lemonade Society serves refreshments to
the men’s handball team.”
—Author Unknown
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
In These Silent Hours
O Brothers: in these silent hours
God's miracles are wrought;
He giveth His beloved in sleep
A treasure all unsought.
I sit an infant at His feet,
Where moments teach me more
Than all the toil and all the books
Of all the ages hoar.
Tersteegen
(How They Prayed Volume Two, Edwin and Lillian Harvey, p 23)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Of what an easy, quick access
My blessed Lord, art thou! how suddenly
May our requests thine ears invade!
To show that state dislikes not easiness,
If I but lift mine eyes, my suit is make;
Thou canst no more not hear than thou canst die.
Of what supreme, almighty power
425
Is thy great arm, which spans the east and west,
And tracks the centre to the sphere!
By it do all things live their measured hour:
We cannot ask the thing which is not there,
Blaming the shallowness of our request.
Of what unmeasurable love
Art thou possessest, who, when thou couldst not die,
Wert fain to take our flesh and cruse,
And for our sakes, in person sin reprove;
That by destroying that which tied thy purse,
Thou mightest make way for liberlaity.
Since then these three wait on thy throne,
Ease, Power and Love; I value prayer so,
That were I to leave all but one,
Wealth, fame, endownments virtues, all should go,
I and dear prayer could together dwell,
And quickly gain, for each inch lost, and ell.
George Herbert
(Quoted in Prayer and its Remarkable Answers, Patton, p 166)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
O God of Bethel
O God of Bethel! By whose hand
Thy people still are fed;
Who, through this weary pilgrimage
Hast all our fathers led—
Our vows, our prayers we now present
Before thy throne of grace:
God of our fathers! bed the God
Of their succeeding race.
Through each perplexing path of life,
Our wandering footsteps guide;
Give us each day our daily bread,
And raiment fit provide.
Oh spread thy covering wings around,
Till all our wand’rings cease,
And at our Father’s loved abode,
Our souls arrive in peace.
426
Such blessings from thy gracious hand,
Our humble prayers implore;
And thou shalt be our chosen God
And portion evermore.
John Logan
(Quoted in Prayer and its Remarkable Answers, Patton, p 189)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
O Lord, by Whom ye come to God,
The Life, the Truth, the Way,
The path of prayer Thyself hast trod;
Lord, teach us now to pray.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Oh, this is blessing, this is rest!
Into thine arms, O Lord, I flee;
I hide me in thy faithful breast,
And pour out all my soul to thee.
There is a host dissuading me;
But all their voices far above,
I hear thy words: ‘Oh, taste and see
The Comfort of a Saviour’s love.’
And, hushing every adverse sound,
Asif all saints encamped about
One trusting heart pursued by doubt.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
O, tenderness! O, truth divine!
Lord, I am altogether thine,
I have bowed down; I need not flee;
Peace,peace is mine in trusting thee.
A. L. Waring
(Prayer and its Remarkable Answers, William Patton p 136)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
427
O Thou who camest from above
O Thou who camest from above
The pure, celestial fire to impart:
Kindlea flame of sacred love
On the mean altar of my heart.
There let it for Thy glory burn
With inextinguishable blaze,
And trembling to its source return,
In humble prayer and fervent praise.
Charles Wesley
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Oh, closer every day;
Let me lean harder on Thee, Jesus,
Yes, harder all the way.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Oh, what peace we often forfeit!
Oh, what needless pain we bear!
All because we do not carry
Everything to God in prayer.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Oh, ye who sigh and languish
And mourn your lack of power,
Hear ye this gentle whisper:
“Could ye not watch one hour?”
For fruitfulness and blessing
There is no royal road;
The power for holy service
Is intercourse with God.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Once it was the blessing,
Now it is the Lord;
Once it was the feeling,
428
Now it is His Word.
Once His gifts I wanted.
Now the Giver own;
Once I sought for healing,
Now Himself alone.
Once ‘twas painful trying,
Now ‘tis perfect trust;
Once a half salvation,
Now the uttermost.
Once ‘twas ceaseless holding,
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
On Opening a Place for Social Prayer
Jesus, where'er thy people meet,
There they behold thy mercy-seat;
Where'er they seek thee thou art found,
And ev'ry place is hallow'd ground.
For thou, within no walls confin'd,
Inhabitest the humble mind;
Such ever bring thee, where they come,
And going, take thee to their home.
Dear Shepherd of thy chosen few!
Thy former mercies here renew;
Here, to our waiting hearts, proclaim
The sweetness of thy saving name.
Here may we prove the pow'r of pray'r,
To strengthen faith, and sweeten care;
To teach our faint desires to rise,
And bring all heav'n before our eyes.
Behold! At thy commanding word,
We stretch the curtain and the cord;
Come thou, and fill this wider space,
And help us with a large increase.
Lord, we are few, but thou art near;
Nor short thine arm, nor deaf thine ear;
Oh rend the heav'ns, come quickly down,
429
And make a thousand hearts thine own!
William Cowper
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
O watch and fight, and pray.
The battle ne’er give o’er.
Renew it boldly every day,
And help divine implore.
Ne’er think the victory won,
Nor lay thine armor down;
The work of faith will not be done,
Till thou obtain thy crown.
Fight on, my soul.....
George Heath
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Praise Him
In the happy moments, praise Him,
In the difficult moments, seek Him,
In the busy moments, bless Him,
In the quiet moments, worship Him.
In the waiting moments, trust Him,
In the painful moments, touch Him,
In the lovely moments, thank Him,
In the quiet moments, worship Him.
For the glory in all our moments,
He is there,
In goodness, in kindness, in love.
Amen.
Recorded by George Beverly Shea
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Pray, though the gifts you ask for
May never comfort your fears,
May never repay your pleading::
Yet pray, and with hopeful tears,
430
An answer --not that you sought for,
But diviner--will come one day:
Yet strive and wait and pray.
Adelaide A. Procter
(Prayer and its Remarkable Answers, William Patton p 72)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Practice the Presence of Jesus
Practice the presence of Jesus
In all that you do and say.
Remember His beautiful promise,
"I will be with you always":
In the hush of the early morning,
Ere the clamoring duties come;
And all through the day with its problems,
Till time of the setting sun.
Think of Him always as walking
Constantly there at your side,
Giving you power and purpose,
With nothing you'll need to hide.
Then, all through the nights—some sleepless—
Remember you're not alone.
Practice the presence of Jesus
Till you reach your heavenly home!
Alice Hansche Mortenson
(How They Prayed Volume Two, Edwin and Lillian Harvey, p 92)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Prayer Answered by Crosses
I asked the Lord, that I might grow
In faith, and love, and every grace,
Might more of His salvation know,
And seek more earnestly His face.
It was He who taught me thus to pray,
431
And He, I trust has answered prayer;
But it has been in such a way,
As almost drove me to despair.
I hoped that in some favored hour,
At once He'd answer my request:
And by His love's constraining power,
Subdue my sins, and give me rest.
Instead of this, He made me feel
The hidden evils of my heart;
And let the angry powers of hell
Assault my soul in every part.
Yes more, with His own hand He seemed
Intent to aggravate my woe;
Crossed all the fair designs I schemed,
Blasted my gourds, and laid me low.
Lord, why is this, I trembling cried,
Will You pursue Your worm to death?
"This in this way," the Lord replied,
"I answer prayer for grace and faith."
"These inward trials I employ,
From self and pride to set you free;
And break your schemes of earthly joy,
That you may seek your all in Me."
by John Newton
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Prayer Changes Things
Prayer changes things -- and yet how blind
And slow we are to taste and see
The blessedness that comes to those
Who trust in Thee.
But henceforth we will just believe God.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
432
Prayer is...
Prayer is the soul’s sincere desire,
Unuttered or expressed;
The motion of a hidden fire
That trembles in the breast.
Prayer is the burden of a sigh,
The falling of a tear,
The upward glancing of an eye,
When none but God is neat.
Prayer is the simplest form of speech
That infant lips can try;
Prayer is the sublimest strains that reach
The Majesty on high.
Written by James Montgomery, the son of a Moravian missionary,
who, despite his religious teaching, did not learn of the joys of
salvation until he had bitterly experienced the disappointments of
the pleasures of this world. Fifty-two Prayer Meetings, J. E. Shultz,
1936
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Prayer is the Christian’s vital breath,
The Christian’s native air,
His watchword at the gates of death,
He enters heaven with prayer.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Prayer
– Phil 4:6; Acts 6:4; Dan 9:3
Prayer is the soul’s sincere desire
Uttered or unexpressed;
The motion of a hidden fire,
That trembles in the breast.
Prayer is the burden of a sigh,
The falling of a tear;
433
The unward glancing of an eye
When none but God is near.
Prayer is the contrite sinner’s voice,
Returning from his ways;
While angels in their songs rejoice,
And cry, “Behold, he prays!”
The saints in prayer appear as one,
In word, and deed, and mind;
While with the Father and the Son,
Sweet felloship they find.
Nor prayer is made on earth alone;
The Holy Spirit pleads;
And Jesus, on the eternal throne,
For sinners intercedes.
O thou by whom we come to God,
The Life, the Truth, the Way!
The path of prayer thyself hast trod;
Lord, teach us how to pray.
A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, William Gadsby, #1002
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Prayer makes darkened clouds withdraw,
Prayer climbs the ladder Jacob saw;
Gives exercise to faith and love,
Brings every blessing from above.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Prayers and praises go in pairs,
They hath praises who hath prayers.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Pray On
“Pray on, when rough and dark your pathway,
434
And you cannot see the light;
When every spark of hope has vanished,
And bright day has turned to night.
Pray on, for God doth surely hear you,
Noting well each sad request;
Pray then in faith, truly believing
That He always gives what’s best.”
Adam Baum
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Pray, though the gifts you ask for
May never comfort your fears,
May never repay your pleading::
Yet pray, and with hopeful tears,
An answer --not that you sought for,
But diviner--will come one day:
Your eyes are too dim tosee it,
Yet strive and wait and pray.
Adelaide A. Procter
(Prayer and its Remarkable Answers, William Patton p 72)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
“Pray without ceasing.”
1 Thess 5:17 Eph 6:18
Prayer was appointed to convey
The blessings God designs to give.
Long as they live should Christians pray;
For only while they pray they.
The Christian’s heart his prayer indites;
He speaks as prompted from within;
The Spirit his petition writes,
And Christ receives and gives it in.
’Tis prayer supports the soul that’s weak,
Though thought be broken, language lame,
Pray, if thou canst or canst not speak’
435
But pray with faith in Jesus’ name.
Depend on him, thou canst not fail;
Make all thy wants and wishes known;
Fear not, his merits must prevail;
Ask what thou wilt, it shall be done.
A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, William Gadsby, #882
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Revelation
I knelt to pray when day was done,
and prayed, "O Lord, bless everyone;
Lift from each saddened heart the pain,
and let the sick be well again."
And then I awoke another day,
and carelessly went on my way.
The whole day long I did not try
to wipe the tear from any eye;
I did not try to share the load
of anybody on the road;
I did not even go to see
the sick man just next door to me.
But once again, when day was done,
I prayed, "O Lord, bless everyone...."
But as I prayed, into my ear
there came a voice that whispered clear,
"Pause just now, before you pray;
Whom have you tried to bless today?
God's sweetest blessings always go
to hands that serve Him here below."
And then I hid my face and cried,
"Forgive me, God, for I have lied.
Let me but see another day,
and I will live the way I pray."
436
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Say a Prayer
I said a prayer for you today
And know God must have heard
I felt the answer in my heart
Although He spoke not a word.
I didn’t ask for wealth or fame
(I knew you wouldn’t mind)
I asked for priceless treasures rare
Of a more lasting kind.
I prayed that He’d be near to you
At the start of each new day,
To grant you health and blessing fair
And friends to share your way.
I asked for happiness for you
In all things great and small.
But that you’d know His loving care
I prayed the most of all.
Source unknown
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Shepherd Divine, our wants relieve
In this and every day;
To all Thy tempted followers give
The power, to watch and pray.
The spirit of interceding grace
Give us the faith to claim;
To wrestle till we see Thy face
And know Thy hidden Name.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Someone Prayed
437
Someone Prayed
The day was long, the burden I had borne
Seemed heavier than I could longer bear,
And then it lifted—but I did not know
Someone had knelt in prayer;
Had taken me to God that very hour,
And asked the easing of the load, and He
In infinite compassion had stepped down
And taken it from me.
Source unknown
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Spirit of the living God,
Fall fresh on me.
Spirit of the living god,
Fall fresh on me.
Break me! Melt me! Mold me! Fill me!
Spirit of the living God, fall on me.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Springtime
recorded by George Beverly Shea
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Steal Away
Steal away, steal away, steal away home,
I ain’t got long to stay here.
My Lord calls me, He calls me by thunder,
The trumpet sounds within my soul.
I ain’t got long to stay here.
Green trees are bending, O sinner
Sound the trumpet, the trumpet sounds within in soul,
I ain’t got long to stay here.
438
Steal away, steal away, steal away to Jesus.
Steal away, steal away home,
I ain’t got long to stay here.
Recorded by George Bev Shea
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Still to the lowly soul,
He doth Himself impart
And for His dwelling and His throne
Chooseth the poor in heart.
All the Prayers of the Bible, Herbert Lockyer p 176
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Sweet Hour of Prayer
Sweet hour of prayer, sweet hour of prayer,
That calls me from a world of care,
And bids me at my Father’s throne,
Make all my wants and wishes known!
In seasons of distress and grief,
My soul has often found relief,
And oft escaped the tempter’s snare
By thy return, sweet hour of prayer.
Sweet hour of prayer, sweet hour of prayer,
The joys I feel, the bliss I share
of those whose anxious spirits burn
with strong desires for thy return!
With such I hasten to the place
Where God, my Saviour, shows his face,
and gladly take my station there,
and wait for thee, sweet hour of prayer.
Sweet hour of prayer, sweet hour of prayer,
thy wings shall my petition bear
To Him, whose truth and faithfulness
Engage the waiting soul to bless:
And since he bids me seek his face,
Believe his word, and trust his grace,
I’ll cast on him my every care, and wait for thee,
439
Sweet hour of prayer.
By William W. Walford 1842
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Take Time to be Holy
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Teach Me to Pray, Lord
Teach me to pray Lord, teach me to pray,
This is my heart cry day unto day;
I long to know Thy will and Thy way;
Teach me to pray Lord, teach me to pray.
Power in prayer, Lord, power in prayer,
Here ‘mid earth’s sin and sorrow and care;
Men lost and dying, souls in despair;
O give me power, power in prayer.
My weakened will, Lord, teach me to pray;
My sinful nature Thou canst subdue;
Fill me just now with power anew,
Power to pray and power to do!
Teach me to pray Lord, teach me to pray;
Thou art my Pattern, day unto day;
Thou art my surety, now and for aye;
Teach me to pray, Lord, teach me to pray.
REFRAIN
Living in Thee, Lord and Thou in me;
Constant abiding, this is my plea;
Grant me Thy power, boundless and free:
Power with men and with power with Thee.
Words and music by Albert S. Reitzd; copyright 1925, renewal
Broadman Press. All rights reserved. Used by permission
440
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Answered Prayers
We know not what we should pray for as we ought - Romans 8:26.
I prayed for strength, and then I lost awhile
All sense of nearness, human and divine;
The love I leaned on failed and pierced my heart;
The hands I clung to loosed themselves from mine;
But while I swayed, weak, trembling, and alone,
The everlasting arms upheld my own.
I prayed for light; the sun went down in clouds,
The moon was darkened by a misty doubt,
The stars of heaven were dimmed by earthly fears,
But all my little candle flames burned out;
But while I sat in shadow, wrapped in night,
The face of Christ made all the darkness bright.
I prayed for peace, and dreamed of restful ease,
A slumber drugged from pain, a hushed repose;
Above my head the skies were black with storm,
And fiercer grew the onslaught of my foes;
But while the battle raged, and wild winds blew,
I heard His voice, and perfect peace I knew.
I thank Thee, Lord, Thou wert too wise to heed
My feeble prayers, and answer as I sought,
Since these rich gifts Thy bounty has bestowed
Have brought me more than I had asked or thought.
Giver of good, so answer each request
With Thine own giving, better than my best.
- Annie Johnson Flint
V. Raymond Edman, But God!, (Zondervan Publishing House,
Grand Rapids; 1962), p. 103
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Beautiful Garden of Prayer
There’s a garden where Jesus is waiting,
There’s a place that is wondrously fair;
441
For it glows with the light of His presence,
‘Tis the beautiful garden of prayer.
There’s a garden where Jesus is waiting,
And I go with my burden and care,
Just to learn form His lips words of comfort
In the beautiful garden or prayer.
There’s a garden where Jesus is waiting,
And He bids you to come meet Him there;
Just to bow, and receive a new blessing,
In the beautiful garden of prayer.
CHORUS
O the beautiful garden, the garden of prayer,
O the beautiful garden of prayer;
There my Savior awaits, and He opens the gates
To the beautiful garden of prayer.
Words by Eleanor Allen Schroll and music by James H. Fillmore
copyright1920. Renewed by Nazarene Publishing House. Used by
permission
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Difference
I got up early one morning
and rushed right into the day;
I had so much to accomplish
that I didn’t have time to pray.
Problems just tumbled about me,
and heavier came each task.
“Why doesn’t God help me?” I wondered.
He answered,”You didn’t ask.”
I wanted to see joy and beauty,
but the day toiled on, gray and bleak;
I wondered why God didn’t show me.
He said, “But you didn’t seek.”
I tried to come into God’s presence;
I used all my keys at the lock.
442
God gently and lovingly chided,
“My child, you didn’t knock.”
I woke up early this morning,
and paused before entering the day;
I had so much to accomplish
that I had to take time to pray.
–Author unknown
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The House of Prayer Mark 11:17
Thy mansion is the Christian’s heart,
O Lord, Thy dwelling-place secure!
Bid the unruly throng depart,
And leave the consecrated door.
Devoted as it is to Thee,
A thievish swarm frequents the place;
They steal away my joys from me,
And rob my Saviour of His praise.
There, too, a sharp designing trade
Sin, Satan, and the World maintain;
Nor cease to press me, and persuade
To part with ease, and purchase pain.
I know them, and I hate their din;
Am weary of the bustling crowd;
But while their voice is heard within,
I cannot serve Thee as I would.
Oh! for the joy Thy presence gives,
What peace shall reign when Thou art there;
Thy presence makes this den of thieves
A calm delightful house of prayer.
And if Thou make Thy temple shine,
Yet, self-abased, will I adore:
The gold and silver are not mine;
I give Thee what was Thine before.
Olney Hymns, by William Cowper, from Cowper’s Poems, Sheldon
& Company, New York
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
443
The light of love is round His feet,
His paths are never dim;
And He comes nigh to us, when we
Dare not come nigh to Him.
Let us be simple with Him, then,
Not backward, stiff, or cold,
As though our Bethlehem could be
What Sinai was of old.
(Prayer and its Remarkable Answers, William Patton p 75)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Lord Has Heard and Answered Prayer
The Lord has heard and answered prayer
and saved his people in distress;
this to the coming age declare,
that they his holy name may bless.
The Lord, exalted on his throne,
looked down from heav’n with pitying eye
to still the lowly captive’s moan
and save his people doomed to die.
All men in Zion shall declare
his gracious name with one accord,
when kings and nations gather there
to serve and worship God the Lord
The earth and heav’ns shall pass away,
like vesture worn and laid aside,
but changeless you shall live alway,
your years forever shall abide.
You, O Jehovah, shall endure,
your throne forever is the same;
and to all generations sure
shall be your great memorial name.
Psalm 102:17-27 The Psalter, 1912; alt. 1990 mod.
444
Tune 1973 from the Oxford Books of Carols by permission of
Oxford University Press
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The House of Prayer
Mar 11:17, 1 Cor 3:16.17
Thy mansion is the Christian’s heart,
O Lord, thy dwelling-place secure!
Bid the unruly throng depart,
And leave the consecrated door.
Devoted as it is to thee,
A thievish swarm frequents the place;
They steal away my joys from me,
And rob my Saviour of his praise.
There, to a sharp designing trade,’
Sin, Satan, and the world maintain;
Nor cease to press me, and persuade
To part with ease and purchase pain.
I know them, and I hate their din;
Am weary of the bustling crowd;
But while their voice is heard within,
I cannot serve thee as I would.
O for the joy thy presence gives;
What peace shall reign when thou art here;
Thy presence makes this den of thieves
A calm, delightful house of prayer.
And if thou make thy temple shine,
Yet, self-abased, will I adore;
The gold and silver are not mine;
I give thee what was thine before.
A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, William Gadsby, #381
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Ministry of Intercession
445
There is no holy service
But hath its secret bliss:
Yet, of all blessed ministries,
Is one so dear as this?
The ministry that cannot be
A wondering seraph’s dower,
Enduing mortal weakness
With more than angel-power;
The ministry of purest love
Uncrossed by any fear,
That bids us meet at the Master’s feet
And keeps us very near.
God’s ministers are many,
Remembrancers that day and night
While some are hushed in slumber,
And thus the saintly number
And thus the sacred courses
The tide of grace By time or place
For this His gracions will,
This holy office fill.
Some to fresh service wake,
No change or chance can break.
Are evermore fulfilled,
Is never stayed or stilled.
Oh, If our ears were opened
To hear as angels do
The Intercession-chorus
Arising full and true,
We should hear it soft up-welling
In Morning’s pearly light ;
Through evening’s shadows swelling In grandly gathering might;
The sultry silence filling
Of noontide’s thunderous
glow,
And the solemn starlight thrilling
With ever-deepening flow.
We should hear it through the rushing
Of the city’s restless roar,
And trace its gentle gushing
O’er ocean’s crystal floor:
We should hear it far up-floating
Beneath the Orient moon,
And catch the golden noting
From the busy Western noon;
And pine-robed heights would echo As the mystic chant up-floats,
And the sunny plain Resound again With the myriad-mingling notes.
Who are the blessed ministers
Of this world-gathering
band?
All who have learnt one language, Through each far-parted land ;
All who have learnt the story
Of Jesu’s love and grace,
And are longing for His glory
To shine in every face.
All who have known the Father
In Jesus Christ our Lord,
And know the might And love the light
Of the Spirit in the Word.
Yet there are some who see not
Who seldom pass the portals,
Before the golden altar
Who wait afar and falter,
Will ye not join the blessed ranks
Let intercession blend with thanks
Their calling high and grand,
And never boldly stand
On the crimson-stained floor,
And dare not hope for more.
In their beautiful array?
As ye minister to-day!
There are little ones among them
White robes of intercession
First for the near and dear ones
Then for the poor black children,
The busy hands are folded,
In simple love, To God above,
Child-ministers of prayer,
Those tiny servants wear.
Is that fair ministry,
So far beyond the sea.
As the little heart uplifts
Its prayer for all good gifts.
446
There are hands too often weary
With God-entrusted duties,
They bear the golden vials,
Through all the daily trials,
These hands, so tired, so faithful,
And in the ministry of prayer
With the business of the day,
Who are toiling while they pray.
And the golden harps of praise
Through all the dusty ways,
With odours sweet are filled,
And wonderfully skilled.
There are ministers unlettered,
Not of Earth’s great and
wise,
Yet mighty and unfettered
Their eagle-prayers arise.
Free of the heavenly storehouse!
For they ho1d the master-key
That opens all the fulness
Of God’s great treasury.
They bring the needs of others,
And all things are their own,
For their one grand claim Is Jesus’ name
Before their Father’s throne.
There are noble Christian workers, The men of faith and power,
The overcoming wrestlers
Of many a midnight hour;
Prevailing princes with their God,
Who will not be denied,
Who bring down showers of blessing To swell the rising tide.
The Prince of Darkness quaileth
At their triumphant way,
Their fervent prayer availeth
To sap his subtle sway.
But in this temple service
Arch-priests of intercession,
The fulness of anointing
The consecration of their God
They bear the golden vials
In quiet room Or wakeful gloom
Are sealed and set apart
Of undivided heart.
On these is doubly shed,
Is on each low-bowed head.
With white and trembling hand;
These ministers must stand,-
To the Intercession-Priesthood
Mysteriously ordained,
When the strange dark gift of suffering
This added gift hath gained.
For the holy hands uplifted
In suffering’s longest hour
Are truly Spirit-gifted
With intercession-power.
The Lord of Blessing fills them
With His uncounted gold,
An unseen store, Still more and more,
Those trembling hands shall
hold.
Not always with rejoicing
For many a sigh is mingled
Yet every tear bedewing
May be its bright renewing
But when the oil of gladness
The heavenward blaze,
mightily uproars.
This ministry is wrought,
With the sweet odours brought.
The faith-fed altar fire
To purer flame, and higher.
God graciously outpoars,
With blended praise,More
So the incense-cloud ascendeth
A pillar reaching unto heaven
For evermore the Angel
In His Divine High Priesthood
As through calm, crystal air,
Of wreathed faith and prayer.
Of Intercession stands
With fragrance-filled hands,
447
To wave the golden censer
With Spirit-fire intenser,
Before His Father’s throne,
And incense all His own.
And evermore the Father
All-marvellous responses,
The incense-clond returning
We in each drop discerning
Transmuted into wealth unpriced,
The gloria all to Jesus Christ,
Sends radiantly down
His ministers to crown;
As golden blessing-showers,
Some feeble prayer of ours,
By Him who giveth thus
The gladness all to us!
September 1877 The Ministry of Intercession, Andrew Murray, p ixxiv.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The prayers I make will then be sweet indeed
If Thou the Spirit give by which I pray:
My unassisted heart is barren clay,
That of its nature self can nothing feed;
Of good and pious works Thou art the seed,
That quickens only when Thou say’st it may;
Unless Thou show to us Thine own true way
No man can find it: Father! Thou must lead.
-Michelangelo
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The praying Spirit breathe,
The watching power impart,
From all entanglements beneath,
Call off my anxious heart.
My feeble mind sustain,
By worldly thoughts oppressed,
Appears and bid me turn again
To my eternal rest.
The Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick, page 24
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
For prayer that humbles sets the soul
From all delusions free,
And teachers it how utterly
448
Dear Lord, it hangs on Thee.
The Path of Prayer, Samuel Chadwick
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Then earnest let us cry,
And never faint in prayer:
God loves our importunity,
And makes our cause His care.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Prayer Life of Jesus
Since Christ was God, why must He pray?
By Him all things were known and made.
Omniscient and omnipotent.
Why need He ever ask for aid?
Ah! But He put His glory by,
Forgot a while His power great,
Humbled Himself, took human form
And stripped Himself of royal state.
For Christ was also Man; to feel
Man ‘s strongest tempting, and to know
His utmost weakness, He became
Like other men and suffered so.
And touched with our infirmities,
For those few years like us to be,
He still remembers we are dust,
Since He was tempted like as we.
But well He knew the source of help,
Whence comes all power, strength and peace,
In blest communion with His God,
Care and perplexity would cease.
When all earth’s sorrow and its sin
Too heavy on His spirit weighed,
Quiet and solitude He sought
And to His Father prayed.
Annie Johnson Flint
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
449
The Proper Way to Pray
The proper way for a man to pray,
Said Deacon Lemuel Keyes,
And the only proper attitude
Is down upon his knees.
No, I should say the way to pray,
Said Reverend Doctor Wise,
“Is standing straight with outstretched arms
And rapt and upturned eyes.
Oh, no, no, no, said Elder Slow,
Such posture is too proud.
A man should pray with eyes fast-closed
And head contritely bowed.
It seems to me his hands should be
austerely clasped in front
With both thumbs pointing toward the ground,
Said Reverend Doctor Blunt.
Last year I fell in Hidgekin’s well
Headfirst, said Cyrus Brown,
With both my heels a-stickin’ up
And my head a-pointin’ down.
And I made a prayer right then and there,
The best prayer I ever said,
The prayingest prayer I ever prayed,
A standin’ on my head.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
These Three Wait on Thy Throne
Since, then, these three wait on Thy throne,
Ease, Power, and Love, I value prayer so,
That were I to leave but one,
Wealth, fame, endowments, virtures,--all should go:
I and dear prayer would together dwell,
And quickly gain, for each inch lost, and ell.
George Herbert
450
(How They Prayed Volume Two, Edwin and Lillian Harvey, p 104)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The silent pleading
Of thy spirit raised above
Will reach His Throne of Glory,
Who is mercy, truth and love
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The victories won by prayer,
By prayer must still be held;
The foe retreats, but only when
By prayer he is compelled.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
There are heights of sweet communion that are awaiting me,
There are ocean depths of mercy that are flowing full and free;
There are precious pearls of promise that can ne’er be priced in
gold,
There’s fulness in my Saviour that has never yet been told.
J. Stuart Holden
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
They tell me, Lord, that when I seem
To be in speech with you,
Since but one voice is heard, it’s all a dream
One talker aping two.
Sometimes it is, yet not as they
Conceive, Rather I
Seek in my self the things I hoped to say,
But lo! My wells are dry.
Then, seeing me empty, you forsake
The listener’s role and through
My dumb lips breathe and into utterance wake
The thoughts I never knew.
And thus you neither need reply
Nor can; thus, while we seem
451
Two talkers, thou art One forever, and I
No dreamer, but thy dream.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The weary ones had rest, the sad had joy
That day, and wondered ‘how.’
A ploughman singing at his work had prayed,
‘Lord, help them now.”
Away in foreign lands they wondered how
Their simple word had power.
At home, the Christians two or three had met
To pray an hour.
Yes, we are always wond’ring, wond’ring ‘how’:
Because we do not see
Someone, unknown perhaps, and far away,
On bended knee!
F.. Nesbit
Life Abiding and Abounding, W.H. Griffith Thomas, p 49
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Thou art coming to a King,
Large petitions with thee bring;
For his grace and power are such
None can ever ask too much.
–John Newton
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Though I’m but dust, I pray,
Before God standing,
Not asking pleasure’s way,
Nor gold demanding;
But greater things I ask,
From God requesting
No less than that He give
To me that I may live
452
Life everlasting.
Prayer, O. Hallesby, p 176
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Thy name, O Jesus, beckons me,
That trusting I shall come to Thee,
In faith and love on Thee lay hold
And deep within my heart enfold.
I call upon Thy name each day,
Where’er on earth I wander may,
It is for me a house of peace,
Where from all grief I find release.
Prayer, O. Hallesby, p 58
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Tis not to those who stand erect,
Or those who bend the knee,
It is to those who bow the heart
The Lord will gracious be;
It is the posture of the soul
That pleases or offends;
If it be not in God’s sight right
Naught else can make amends.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
This prayer is not his own: God Himself is speaking.
See, God prays in him, and he stands in deep contemplation.
God has given him both the contemplation and the answer?
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Thou knowest the way to bring me back,
My fallen spirit to restore;
Oh, for Thy truth and mercy’s sake,
Forgive, and bid me sin no more!
The ruins of my soul repair,
And make my heart a house of prayer.
453
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Thy promise is my only plea,
With this I venture nigh;
Thou callest the burdened soul to Thee,
And such, O Lord, am I.
Thy promise, Lord, is ever sure,
And they that in Thy house would dwell
That happy station to secure,
Must still in holiness excel.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Thy thoughts are good, and thou are kind,
E’en when we think it not;
How many an anxious, faithless mind
Sits grieving o’er its lot,
And frets and pines by day and night,
As God had lost it out of sight,
And all its wants forgot.
Ah, no! God ne’er forgets his own,
His heart is far too true;
He ever seeks their good alone,
His love is dailyh new,
And though thou deem that things fo ill,
Yet he is just and holy still,
In all things he can do.
The Lord is eveer close and near
To those who keep his word;
Whene’er they cry to him in fear,
Their prayer is surely heard;
He knoweth well, who love him well;
His love shall yet their clouds dispel,
And grant the hope deferred.
Paul Gerjardt
(Prayer and its Remarkable Answers, Patton, p 211)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
454
Tis a Point I Long to Know
Tis a point I long to know;
Oft it causes anxious thought;
Do I love the Lord, or no?
Am I His, or am I not?
If I love, why am I thus;
Why this dull, this lifeless frame?
Hardly, sure, can they be worse,
Who have never heard His name.
Could my heart so hard remain,
Prayer a task and burden prove;
Every trifle give me pain,
If I knew a Savior's love?
When I turn my eyes within,
All is dark and vain and wild;
Filled with unbelief and sin,
Can I deem myself a child?
If I pray, or hear, or read,
Sin is mixed with all I do;
You that love the Lord indeed,
Tell me, is it thus with you?
Yet I mourn my stubborn will,
Find my sin a grief and thrall!
Should I grieve for what I feel,
If I did not love at all?
Could I joy His saints to meet
Choose the ways I once abhor'd;
Find at times the promise sweet,
If I did not love the Lord?
Lord, decide the doubtful case,
Thou who art Thy people's sun:
Shine upon Thy work of grace,
If it be indeed begun.
Let me love Thee more and more,
If I love at all, I pray;
If I have not loved before,
455
Help me to begin today.
John Newton
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
‘Tis the Blessed Hour of Prayer
‘Tis the blessed hour of prayer, when our hearts are lowly bend,
And we gather to Jesus, our Saviour and Friend;
If we come to Him in Faith, His protection to share,
What a balm for the weary! O how sweet to be there!
‘Tis the blessed hour of prayers, when the Savior draws near,
With a tender compassion His children to hear;
When He tells us we may cast at His feet every care,
What a balm for the weary! O how sweet to be there!
‘Tis the blessed hour of prayer, when the tempted and tried
To the Saviour who loves them their sorrow confide;
With a sympathizing heart He removes every care,
What a balm for the weary! O how sweet to be there!
At the blessed hour of prayer, trusting Him we believe
That the blessings we’re needing we’ll surely receive;
In the fullness of this trust we shall lose every care;
What a balm for the weary! O how sweet to be there!
Words By Fanny J. Crosby and music by William H. Doane
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
To God your every want
In instant prayer display.
Pray always; pray and never faint:
Pray! Without ceasing, pray.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
To Pray
456
To pray is as it were to bathe one's-self in a cool bubbling
stream, and so to escape from the heat of earth's summer sun.
To pray is to mount on eagle's wings above the clouds
and get into the clear heaven where God dwells.
To pray is to enter the treasure-house of God and to enrich
one's-self out of an inexhaustible storehouse.
To pray is to grasp heaven in one's arms,
to embrace the Deity within one's soul,
and to feel one's body made a temple of the Holy Spirit.
To pray is to cast off your burdens,
it is to tear away your rags,
it is to shake off your diseases,
it is to be filled with spiritual vigor,
it is to reach the highest point of Christian health.
God give us to be much in the holy art of prayer.
C. H. Spurgeon
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
To stretch my hand and touch Him,
Though He be far away;
To raise my eyes and see Him
Through darkness as through day:
To lift my voice and call Him-This is to pray!
To feel a hand extended
By One Who standeth near;
To view the love that shineth
In eyes serene and clear ;
To know that He is calling-This is to hear!
Life Abiding and Abounding, W.H. Griffith Thomas, p
41
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
457
Traveling on My Knees
Last night I took a journey
To a land across the seas;
I did not go by boat or plane,
I traveled on my knees.
I saw so many people there
In deepest depths of sin,
But Jesus told me I should go,
That there were souls to win.
But I said, “Jesus I cannot go
And work with such as these.”
He answered quickly, “Yes you can
By traveling on your knees.”
He said, “You pray; I’ll meet the need,
You call and I will hear;
Be concerned about lost souls,
Of those both far and near.”
And so I tried it, knelt in prayer,
Gave up some hours of ease;
I felt the Lord right by my side
While traveling on my knees.
As I prayer on and saw souls saved
And twisted bodies healed,
And saw God’s workers’ strength renewed
While laboring on the field.
I said, “Yes, Lord I have a job,
My desire Thy will to please;
I can go and heed Thy call
By traveling on my knees.”
Sandra Goodwin, Source unknown
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Trials make the promise sweet;
Trials give new life to prayer;
Trials bring me to His feet,
Lay me low, and keep me there.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
458
Two went to pray? Oh, rather say
One went to brag, the other to pray;
One stands up close and treads on high
Where the other dares not send his eyes;
One nearer to God’s altar trod,
The other to the altar’s God.
–Richard Crashaw
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Twice blest, whose lives are faithful prayers,
Whose lives in higher love endure!
What souls possess themselves so pre!
Or is there blessedness like theirs.
Tennyson
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Unanswered yet?
Unanswered yet? The Prayer your lips have pleaded
In Agony of heart these many years?
Does faith begin to fail; is hope departing,
And think you all in vain those falling tears?
Say not the Father hath not heard your prayer;
You shall have your desire sometime, somewhere.
Unanswered yet? Though when you first presented
This petition at the Father’s throne,
It seemed you could not wait the time of asking,
So urgent was your heart to make it known.
Though years have passed since then, do not despair;
The Lord will answer you sometime, somewhere.
Unanswered yet? Nay, do not say unanswered,
Perhaps your part is not yet wholly done,
The work began when first your prayer was uttered,
And God will finish what He has begun.
Keep the incense burning at the shrine of prayer,
His glory you shall see sometime, somewhere.
Unanswered yet? Faith cannot be unanswered;
Here feet are firmly planted on the Rock;
459
Amid the wildest storms she stands undaunted,
Nor quails before the loudest thunder shock.
She knows Omnipotence has heard her prayer,
And cries, “It shall be done sometime, somewhere.”
Ophelia Guyon Browning
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
What a Friend We Have in Jesus
What a friend we have in Jesus,
all our sins and griefs to bear,
What a privilege to carry,
everything to God in prayer!
O what peace we often forfeit,
O what needless pain we bear,
All because we do not carry,
everything to God in prayer.
Have we trials and temptations?
Is there trouble anywhere?
We should never be discouraged:
take it to the Lord in prayer!
Can we find a friend so faithful,
who will all our sorrows share?
Jesus knows our every weakness
take it to the Lord in prayer!
Are we weak and heavy laden,
cumbered with a load of care?
Precious Savior, still our refuge
take it to the Lord in prayer!
Do thy friends despise, forsake thee?
Take it to the Lord in prayer!
In his arms he’ll take and shield thee;
thou wilt find a solace there.
Joseph Scriven 1855; Charles C. Converse-1868
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
460
What better can we do, than to the place
Repairing, where He judged us, prostrate fall
Before Him reverent; and there confess
Humbly our faults, and pardon beg; with tears
Watering the ground, and with our sighs the air
Frequenting?
(John Milton has Adam saying to Eve)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Exhortation to Prayer.
1 Thess 5:17
What various hindrances we meet,
In coming to the mercy-seat!
Yet he who that knows the worth of prayer,
But wishes to be often there?
Prayer makes the darkened cloud withdraw,
Prayer climbs the ladder Jacob saw;
Give exercise to faith and love;
Brings every blessing from above.
Restraining prayer, we cease to fight;
Mayer makes the Christian’s armour bright;
And Satan trembles when he sees
The weakest saint upon his knees.
While Moses stood with arms spread wide,
Success was found on Israel’s side;
But when, through weariness, they failed,
That moment Amalek prevailed.
Have you no words? ah! think again;
Words flow apace when you complain,
And fill Your fellow-creatures’ ear
With the sad tale of all your care.
Were half the breath thus vainly spent,
To heaven in supplication sent,
Your cheerful song would oftener be,
“Hear what the Lord has done for me.”
Cowper
A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, William
Gadsby, #394
461
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
What wond’rous grace!
What wond’rous grace! who knows its full extent?
A creature, dust and ashes, speaks with God-Tells all his woes, enumerates his wants,
Yea, pleads with Deity, and gains relief.
’Tis prayer, yes, ’tis ‘effectual, fervent prayer,’
Puts dignity on worms, proves life divine,
Makes demons tremble, breaks the darkest cloud,
And with a princely power prevails with God!
And shall this privilege become a task?
My God, forbid! Pour out thy Spirit's grace,
Draw me by love, and teach me how to pray.
Yea, let Thy holy unction from above
Beget, extend, maintain my intercourse
with Father, Son, and Spirit, Israel’s God,
Until petitions are exchanged for praise
Irons.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
When Is It Time to Pray?
I mean our stomachs growl when it is time to eat.
Our eyes start closing when it is time to sleep.
When our feelings get hurt, it is time for tears,
With a new birth it is time to care.
People will often tell us, quite so,
When it is time to come, or stay, or go.
But how do you know when it is time to pray?
Does an alarm go off next to your bed?
Or is there a clanging inside your head?
Do your eyes start blinking, a horn start blowing?
Or do you listen for a rooster crowing?
462
Just what is your way of knowing when it is time to pray?
With me...I find it is time to pray
At the beginning and ending of each day.
And when I am sick and feeling bad,
Or scared, or lonely, or lost, or sad.
When the bills blow in like sand
I seek a touch of the Master's hand.
When I need patience, hope and peace
And an abiding love that will not cease.
When I am thankful for all there is
That now is mine, and yet is His.
Gladness, sadness, joy and grief
We share in prayer. And it is my belief
That whenever my heart has something to say
That is how I know when it's time to pray.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
When Thou Dost Talk With God
When thou dost talk with God--by prayer, I mean—
Lift up pure hands; lay down all lust’s desires;
Fix thoughts on heaven; present a conscience clean:
Since holy blame to mercy’s throne aspires,
Confess faults’guilt, crave pardon for thy sin,
Tread holy paths, call grace to guide therein.
Even as Elias, mounting to the sky,
Did cast his mantle to the earth behind,
So, when the heart presents the prayer on high,
Exclude the world from traffic with the mind:
Lips near to God, and ranging heart within,
Is but vain babbling and converts to sin.
Robert Southwell
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
463
When the goal of the Father
Is the goal of every prayer –
When before the Throne in Heaven
Our High Priest presents if there –
When the Spirit prompts the asking,
When the waiting heart believes –
Then we know of each petition
Everyone who asks receives.
(How They Prayed Volume Two, Edwin and Lillian Harvey)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
When thou wakest in the morning,
Ere thou tread the untried way
Of the lot that lies before thee
Through the coming busy day,
Whether sunbeams promise brightness,
Whether dim forebodings fall,
Be thy dawning glad or gloomy,
Go to Jesus—tell Him all.
In the calm of sweet communion
Let thy daily work be done,
In the peace of soul outpouring
Care be banished, patience won.
And if earth with its enchantments
Seek thy spirit to enthrall,
Ere thou listen—ere thou answer,
Turn to Jesus—tell Him all.
Then as hour by hour glides by thee
Thou wilt blessed guidance know.
Thine own burden being lightened,
Thou canst bear another’s woe.
Thou canst help the weak ones onward,
Thou canst raise up those that fall,
But remember, while thou servest,
Still tell Jesus—tell Him all.
And if weariness creeps o’er thee
As the day wears to its close,
Or if sudden fierce temptations
464
Bring thee face to face with foes,
In thy weakness, in thy peril,
Raise to heaven a trustful call,
Strength and calm for every crisis
Come—in telling Jesus all.
G.M. Taylor
Life Abiding and Abounding, W.H. Griffith Thomas, p 78
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
“I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee.”
Where two or three together meet,
My love and mercy to repeat,
And tell what I have done;
There will I be, says God, to bless,
And every burdened soul redress,
Who worships at my throne.
Make one in this assembly, Lord,
Speak to each heart some healing word,
To set from bondage free;
Impart a kind celestial shower,
And grant that we may spend an hour
In fellowship with thee.
Guilt from the troubled heart remove,
Constrain the soul, by love, to love,
Release from slavish fear;
Then, though in tents of sin we groan,
We’ll sing like those around thy throne,
Till thou shall bring us here.
Kent
A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, William
Gadsby, #1132
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Between Prayer and Sermon.
Mat 18:20
“Where two three, with sweet accord,
465
Obedient to their sovereign Lord,
Meet to recount his acts of grace,
And offer solemn prayer and praise;
“There,” says the Saviour, “will I be,
Amid this little company;
To them unveil my smiling face,
And shed my glories round the place.”
We meet at thy command, dear Lord;
Relying on thy faithful word;
Now fill our hearts with heavenly love.
S. Stennett A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, William
Gadsby, #453
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Ground and Foundation of Prayer
Heb 7:25
Wherewith shall we approach the Lord,
And bow before his throne?
By trusting in his faithful word,
And pleading Christ alone.
The blood, the righteousness, and love
Of Jesus, will we plead;
He lives within the vail above,
For us to intercede.
Sure ground, and sure foundation too,
We find in Jesus’ name;
Herein we every blessing view,
And every favour claim.
Then let his name for ever be
To us Supremely dear;
Our only, all-prevailing plea,
For all our hope is there.
This is the name the Father loves
To hear his children plead;
And all such pleading he approves,
And blesses them indeed.
466
Medley A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, William
Gadsby, #383
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Why need he pray, who held by filial right,
O’er all the world alike of thought and sense,
The fullness of his Sire’s omnipotence?
Why crave in prayer what was his own by might?
Vain is the question,--Christ was man in need,
And being man his duty was to pray.
The son of God confess’d the human need,
And doubless ask’d a blessing every day.
Nor ceases yet for sinful man to plead,
Nor will, till heaven and earth shall pass away.
Hartley Coleridge
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
With Grateful Heart My Thanks I Bring
With grateful heart my thanks I bring
before the great thy praise I sing;
I worship in thy holy place
and praise thee for thy truth and grace;
for truth and grace together shine
in thy most holy word divine.
I cried to thee and thou dist save,
thy word of grace new courage gave;
the kings of earth shall thank thee, Lord,
for they have heard thy wondrous word;
yea, they shall come with songs of praise,
for great and glorious are thy ways.
O Lord, enthroned in glory bright,
thou reignest in the heav’nly height;
the proud in vain thy favor seek,
but thou hast mercy for the meek;
through trouble though my pathway be,
thou wilt revive and strengthen me.
467
Thou wilt stretch forth thy mighty arm
to save me when my foes alarm;
the work thou hast for me begun
shall by thy grace be fully done;
forever mercy dwells with thee;
O Lord, my maker, think on me.
From Psalm 138; Dmitri Bortniansky, 1825; The Psalter, 1912;
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Why Should We Wonder
Why should we wonder at the flight
Of any streaking satellite,
When every worshipping heart can share
A gold immensity of prayer
That circles earth and reaches far
Beyond the mightiest gleaming star-More bright than any galaxy,
More wide than all infinity.
Herald of Holiness
(How They Prayed Volume Two, Edwin and Lillian Harvey, p 41)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Believe that you receive
“Believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.”
Ye poor afflicted souls, give ear,
Who seek the Lord, but fear his frown;
What things ye ask in fervent prayer,
Believing, Christ will send them down.
If sin is loathsome to thy heart,
And shows a most ill-favoured face;
If guilt affords thee fearful smart,
It flows from Jesus’ love and grace.
A feast is now prepared for thee,
In spite of all thy unbelief;
A feast of mercy, sweetly free
For sinners and the sinners’ chief.
Take courage, then; ask and believe,
468
Expecting mercy from the Lord;
The promise runs, “Ask and receive,”
And Christ is faithful to his word.
O Lord, increase my feeble faith,
And give my straitened bosom room
To credit what thy promise saith,
And wait till thy salvation come.
A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, William Gadsby, #897
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
There's a Power Which Man Can Wield
Yes, there's a power which man can wield,
When mortal aid is vain;
That eye, that arm, that love to reach,
That list'ning ear to gain.
That power is prayer, which soars on high,
Through Jesus, to the throne,
And moves the hand which moves the world To bring deliverance down.
-CHM
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Never Sleep the Sun Up
Yet never sleep the sun up; prayer should
Dawn with the day: these are set awful hours
'Twixt Heaven and us: the manna was not good
After sunrising; for day sullies flowers:
Rise to prevent the sun; sleep doth sins glut,
And Heaven's gates open when the world is shut.
(How They Prayed Volume Two, Edwin and Lillian Harvey, p 23)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
You Must Wait
Desperately, helplessly, longingly I cried,
Quietly, patiently, lovingly He replied.
I pled and I wept for a clue to my fate.
And the Master so gently said, “Child, you must wait.”
469
“Wait! You say wait!” my indignant reply,
Lord, I need answers - I need to know why.
Is Your hand shortened, or have You not heard?
By faith I have asked, and I’m claiming Your word.”
My future and all to which I can relate,
Hangs in the balance and You tell me ‘wait’?
I’m needing a ‘yes’—a go ahead sign,
Or at least a ‘no’ to which I can resign.
And Lord, I’ve been asking and this is my cry,
I’m weary of asking, I need a reply,
Then quietly, softly I learned of my fate,
As my Master replied, once again, “You must wait.”
So I slumped in my chair, defeated and taut.
And I grumbled to God—”So I’m waiting, for what?”
He seemed then to kneel and His eyes met with mine,
And He tenderly said, “I could give you a sign.”
“I could shake the heavens, darken the sun,
Raise up the dead, cause the mountain to run.
All you seek, I could give and pleased you would be.
You would have what you want, but you wouldn’t know Me.”
“You’d not know the depth of My love for each saint.
You’d not know the power that I give to the faint.
You’d not learn to see through clouds of despair.
You’d not learn to trust just by knowing I’m there.”
“You’d not know the joy of resting in Me.
When darkness and silence was all you could see.
You’d never experience that fullness of love,
As the peace of my Spirit descends like a dove.”
“You would know that I give and save for a start,
But you’d not know the depth of the beat of My heart,
The glow of My comfort, late in the night,
The faith that I give when you walk without sight,
“The depth that’s beyond getting just what you ask,
Of an infinite God that makes what you have last!
And you never would know should your pain quickly flee,
What it means that, “My grace is sufficient for thee.”
Yes, your dreams for that loved one, One night would come true.
But oh the loss if you lost what I’m doing to you.
So be silent, my child, and in time you will see,
That the greatest of gifts is to get to know Me.
And though oft may My answers seem terribly late
470
That My most precious answer of all is still ‘wait’.”
- by Russell Kelfer
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
471
Appendix
Appendix Two: Scripture Praying Schedule
Scripture Praying Schedule
The following outline is an aid to assist you in praying through
selected Scriptures on a daily basis. Select the month and date to
determine the Psalm or chapter of the New Testament for any given day
of the year.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
January/April
July/October
February/May
March/June
August/Nov
Sept/Dec
Psa 1
Matt 5:1-27
Psa 3
Mat 5:27-48
Psa 4
Matt 6:19-34
Psa 5
Mat 7
Psa 7
Mat 10
Psa 10
Matt 18:15-35
Psa 11
Mar 9:14-37
Psa 15
Mark 10:17-31
Psa 16
Luk 1:46-56,67-80
Psa 17
Luk 6:27-49
Psa 18
Luk 10:1-20
Psa 30
John 17
Psa 31
Act 2:14-47
Psa 32
Rom 3:9-31
Psa 33
Rom 5
Rom 5
Rom 6
Psa 36
Rom 7
Psa 37
Rom 8
Psa 40
I Cor 13
Psa 42
Gal 1
Psa 47
Gal 2
Psa 51
Gal 3
23
Psa 19
126
24
Luke11:1-13
23:25
25
Psa 23:25
Psa 62
Gal 4
Psa 63
472
Psa 73
Eph 2
Psa 78
Eph 3
Psa 80
Eph 4
Psa 85
Eph 5
Psa 91
Eph 6
Psa 103
Col 1
Psa 115
Col 2
Psa 116
Col 3
Psa 118
2 Tim 2
Psa 119:1-88
2 Tim 3
Psa 119:89-176
Heb 3
Psa
Heb 10:25, Psa
Psa 139
26
27
145
28
29
146
30
Luk 14:15-35
Psa 25
Gal 5
Heb 12
Psa 66
Psa
Joh 14
Psa 27
Gal 6
Psa 71
Heb 13
Psa
Joh 15
Eph 1
Rev 4
Developing your Secret Closet of Prayer, Richard A. Burr, p 169
Appendix Three: Praying for our Missionaries
It has been said that there are three ways to be a missionary.
1. In person, one can go to the mission field and immerse his life
into the lives of those people.
2. In provision, those who don’t go across the waters can pay the
bills of the ones who leave everything.
3. In prayer, we at home have the responsibility to intercede for
those that represent us out there.
Actually all three of these points are good prayer points for us to
prayer about. We can pray for the Lord of the harvest to send out
labors to the mission fields of the world. We can pray for the
provisions to keep them in the work. We can prayer for God to
raise up prayer warriors to intercede for them.
++++++++++++++++++++
473
Appendix Four: Doxologies and Benedictions
Romans
16: 25 Now to him that is able to establish you according to my gospel and the
preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery which hath
been kept in silence through times eternal, 26 but now is manifested, and by the
scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the eternal God, is
made known unto all the nations unto obedience of faith:
27 to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory for ever.
Amen.
Jude
24 Now unto him that is able to guard you from stumbling, and to set you before
the presence of his glory without blemish in exceeding joy,
25 to the only God our Saviour, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory,
majesty, dominion and power, before all time, and now, and for evermore. Amen.
24 Now unto him that is able to guard you from stumbling, and to set you
before the presence of his glory without blemish in exceeding joy,
25 to the only God our Saviour, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory,
majesty, dominion and power, before all time, and now, and for evermore. Amen.
1 Peter 5
10 And the God of all grace, who called you unto his eternal glory in Christ, after
that ye have suffered a little while, shall himself perfect, establish, strengthen
you.
11 To him be the dominion for ever and ever. Amen.
Heb 13
20 Now the God of peace, who brought again from the dead the great shepherd
of the sheep with the blood of an eternal covenant, even our Lord Jesus,
21 make you perfect in every good thing to do his will, working in us that which
is well-pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be the glory for ever
and ever. Amen.
Eph 3
14 For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father,
15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named,
16 that he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, that ye may be
strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inward man;
17 that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; to the end that ye, being
rooted and grounded in love,
18 may be strong to apprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and
length and height and depth,
19 and to know the love of Christ which passeth knowledge, that ye may be
filled unto all the fulness of God.
20 Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that
we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,
21 unto him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus unto all
generations for ever and ever. Amen.
474
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Appendix Five: Select Bibliography
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Life Abiding and Abounding, W.H. Griffith Thomas
The Prayer Meeting, James A. McDonald
The Soul of Prayer, P.T. Forsyth
Bounds, E. M.
Everything by Bounds good for exhorattion. Not very well structured or
academic in nature but very encouraging to prayer.
Eastman, Dick
The Hour That Changes theWorld
A great plan for an individual or a group.
French, Ivan H.
Principles and Practice of Prayer
Very good Bible College lever material. Well organized. I hope his
successor revises and reprints.
Hallsby, Ole
Prayer
Hunter, W. Bingham
The God Who Hears
Bible or Seminary lever. Great research and footnotes. 224 pages
Lockyer, Herbert
All the Prayers of the Bible
A good survey of the prayers of the Bible. Publisher says “Exclusive of
the Psas, which form a prayer-book on heir own, the Bible records no
fewer than 650 definite prayers, of which no less than 450 have recorded
answers.” 296 pages
Murray, Andrew
All of his books are worth reading. Mystical in a good way. Best buy is
“The complete Works of Andrew Murrary”
Palmer, B. M.
Theology of Prayer
A good theology of prayer for the serious student. Full title is “Theology
of Prayer as viewed in the religion of nature and in the system of Grace.
Palmer was pastor of the First Presbyterial Church, New Orleans, LA
475
352 pages
Vander Griend, Alvin J.
The Praying Church Sourcebook
Watts, Isaac
A Guide to Prayer
Good for practical “how to” idead for secret prayer and public or
corporate
476
Appendix Six: The Paradox of Prayer
There are many plain obstacles to the deepening of spiritual life, amid
which I desire to name here only one; it is prayer conceived merely, or
chiefly, as submission, resignation, quietism. We say too soon, "Thy will
be done"; and too ready acceptance of a situation as His will often means
feebleness or sloth. It may be His will that we surmount His will. It may be
His higher will that we resist His lower. Prayer is an act of will much more
than of sentiment, and its triumph is more than acquiescence. Let us
submit when we must, but let us keep the submission in reserve rather
than in action, as a ground tone rather than the stole effort. Prayer with us
has largely ceased to be wrestling. But is that not the dominant scriptural
idea? It is not the sole idea, but is it not the dominant? And is not our
subdued note often but superinduced and unreal?
There is an anthropomorphic sense in which God deals with us in prayer.
He acts as is He is changing His mind when really He never changes Hs
mind about anything.
Appendix Seven: Prayer Glossary of Terms.
The following terms are encountered in the study of prayer.
Centering
Conceived prayer
“Conceived or free prayer is when the words of our prayer are not formed
beforehand to direct our thoughts, but we conceive the matter of
substance of our addresses to God first in our minds, and then put those
conceptions into such words and expressions as we think most proper.”
A Guide to Prayer, Isaac Watts, p 43
Corporate prayer
Ejactory praying
See Extemporanous
Enlargements in Prayer
Gospel Incense, Thomas Cobbet, p 391
Extemporanous prayer
477
“Extemporary prayer is when, without any reflection or meditation
beforehand, we address ourselves to God and speak the thoughts of our
hearts as fast as we conceive ejaculatory prayer, when we lib up our
souls to God In short breathings of request or thanksgiving in the midst of
any cominon affairs of life.” A Guide to Prayer, Isaac Watts, p 43.
Family Prayer
Gospel Incense, Thomas Cobbet, p 67
Implicatory prayers
some of David’s prayer’s were against his enemies.
Importunity in Prayer
Gospel Incense, Thomas Cobbet, p 131
Intercessory praying
Kingdom praying
In taking request for prayer take only one personal request for each
kingdom
Labyrinth praying
See Pray Magazine, May/June 2002, p 40
Leading in Prayer
Meditation
Meltings in Prayer
Gospel Incense, Thomas Cobbet, p 396
Mystical
Organ recital
The prayer meeting has been nicknamed “an organ recital” because so
many people request prayer for individual physical problems like, kidney,
gall bladder, stomace, head ace. While these are very serious to anyone
with the problem if they dominate the meeting it makes for a very self
centered even selfish exercise. It implies that God is there just to relieve
our pain and make life easier for us. This needs to be balanced with
“kingdom praying.”
Pilgrimages
Pleading in prayer
Gospel Incense, Thomas Cobbet, p 348
Prayerwalking
478
Prayer of Faith
Prayer for the dead
Praying through
Responsively
Simultaneous praying
Social Prayer We call them prayer-meetings.C.H.Spurgeon
Spontaneous praying
Straitenings in Prayer
Gospel Incense, Thomas Cobbet, p 370
Unison prayer = all praying verbally together
Unision and separate prayer = all praying verbally together but
each praying his own prayer.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Appendix
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Additions:
The Prayer Meeting, James A. McDonald,
1939
Life Abiding and Abounding, W.H. Griffith Thomas, p
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Self Exhortation
We need to exhort ourselves to the:
The Psalmist exhorted himself:
Privilege of Prayer
479
Prayer is a responsibility but it is also a privilege. Not just something we
ought to do but something we desire to do and eagerly execute.
The battle is the Lord’s not mine or yours. We are not generals or
commanders in the battle but front line solders. It is our responsibility to
perform specific tasks that fit into the greater plan. Such is our privilege.
Process of Prayer
This take time and commitment, learning growth, skill building
We are to come boldly to the throne of grace
Purpose of Prayer
To have appreciation is not enough. To execute the process is not
enough. We must realize success. We need unreserved and unlimited
commitment to successful prayer.
It will not come without sacrifice, fasting. “Some come not except by
prayer and fasting.”
It is not enough to begin to pray, nor to pray aright; nor is it enough
to continue for a time to pray; but we must pray patiently, believing,
continue in prayer until we obtain an answer. George Mueller
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Index
1 Cor 10
11 .............................................................................................. 57
4 .............................................................................................. 410
1 Cor 2
4 ................................................................................................. 62
1 Jn 3
21,22 .......................................................................................... 97
1 Kings 18:1 .................................................................................. 78
1 Kings 20
1-21 ........................................................................................... 67
1 Kings 6
7 .............................................................................................. 169
1 Sa 1
13 ............................................................................................ 170
1 Sam 17
47 ............................................................................................... 62
1 Samuel 14
1-14 ............................................................................................ 61
1 Thess 5
480
17 ............................................................................................ 200
1 Thess. 5
17 ...................................................................................... 89, 224
1 Tim 2
1 .............................................................................................. 283
1 Tim 3
14,15 .......................................................................................... 60
2 Chr 14
11 ............................................................................................... 63
2 Chr 7
15 ............................................................................................... 59
2 Cor. 10: 3 - 5 .............................................................................. 15
A Call for National Repentance ................................................... 282
A Corporate Prayer Meeting.......................................................... 22
A People of Prayer ........................................................................ 22
A Place of Prayer .......................................................................... 22
A Prayer of David .......................................................................... 57
A.C.T.S. ...................................................................................... 308
A.C.T.S. Of Prayer ..................................................................... 171
Ac 1
14 ............................................................................................. 100
Ac 2
42 ............................................................................................. 101
Ac 6
4 ............................................................................................... 101
Act of Prayer has its own Benefit, The ........................................ 196
Acts 1
14 .............................................................................................. 85
Acts 12
1-18 ........................................................................................... 81
Acts 9
1-25 ........................................................................................... 91
Adoring God ................................................................................ 173
Ah dearest Lord! I cannot pray ................................................... 389
American Christians .................................................................... 197
Annotated Bibliography ............................................................... 496
Approach, My Soul, the Mercy Seat ............................................ 392
Attributes of God in Prayer .......................................................... 143
Be not afraid to pray....................................................................... 401
Behold he is praying ...................................................................... 91
Behold the Throne of Grace! ....................................................... 399
Benedictions................................................................................ 495
Blessed Spirit from above ........................................................... 402
Bold Praying .................................................................................. 96
Boring and Blasting, Ours and His .............................................. 200
Boston ......................................................................................... 160
481
Bow down Thine Ear, O Lord and Hear ...................................... 403
Breath on Me............................................................................... 404
Browning ............................................................................. 123, 481
Browning, Ophelia Guyon ................................................... 123, 481
But Prayer ..................................................................................... 80
By Many or by Few ....................................................................... 61
Can I have the things I pray for? ................................................. 405
Church was Born in a Prayer Meeting ......................................... 118
Col 1
9-12 ......................................................................................... 102
Col 4
2-5 ............................................................................................ 101
Coleridge ..................................................................................... 488
Coleridge, Hartley ....................................................................... 488
Come boldly to a throne .............................................................. 406
Come to the morning-prayer ....................................................... 410
Come, Holy Spirit, come ................................................................. 407
Come, My Soul, Thy Suit Prepare ............................................... 408
Come, O Come, Thou Quickening Spirit ..................................... 409
Confession in Prayer ................................................................... 176
Corporate Prayer
How to Have the Manifest Presence of God ............................ 185
The Open Secret ..................................................................... 181
What Is It ................................................................................. 179
Cry of the Spirit
Abba Father, The ..................................................................... 165
Day by Day–a Prayer .................................................................. 411
De Vere ....................................................................................... 439
Dear Saviour Thou Art Mine ........................................................ 414
Deep in unfathomable mines....................................................... 414
Doxologies .................................................................................. 495
Edward Payson ........................................................................... 288
Elijah’s Prevailing Prayer............................................................... 78
Eph 3
12 ............................................................................................... 96
14 .............................................................................................. 93
Ex 32:9-14 ..................................................................................... 74
Example in Prayer, Mary’s ............................................................ 98
Exceeding Abundant Encouragement to Prayer ........................... 93
Exhortation to Prayer .................................................................. 482
Faber ........................................................................................... 390
Faith asks no signal .................................................................... 415
Faith, mighty faith the .................................................................. 416
Father, I stretch my hands to Thee ............................................. 416
Fervent Praying ........................................................................... 202
Flavel .......................................................................................... 362
482
For what are men better .............................................................. 416
French ................................................................................. 224, 365
From Every Stormy Wind That Blows ......................................... 417
Ga 6
9 .............................................................................................. 200
Gen 32 ......................................................................................... 64
Gen 32:26 ................................................................................... 423
Gird thy heavenly armour on ....................................................... 418
God moves in a mysterious ......................................................... 418
God nothing does nor suffers to be done .................................... 419
God of Hills and Plains ................................................................. 67
Grateful Heart.............................................................................. 488
Hatch ........................................................................................... 405
He answered prayer–not in the way I sought .............................. 420
He asked for strength .................................................................. 420
He prayeth best who loveth best ................................................. 421
Heb 10
19 ............................................................................................... 97
Heb 4
14-16 .......................................................................................... 96
Heb. 4:16..................................................................................... 406
High Priest of the Church Dispensation ...................................... 422
His promise ................................................................................. 422
His promise is our only plea ........................................................ 422
Holden ......................................................................................... 472
Holy Ghost, Praying in the........................................................... 162
House of God the Gate of Heaven ................................................ 58
How does the Spirit Help us in Prayer ......................................... 163
How oft He sought the mountain top ........................................... 422
How the Spirit Enables Us to Pray .............................................. 160
How to Pray................................................................................. 204
Hudson Taylor ........................................................................... 237
I asked the Lord .......................................................................... 422
I often say my prayers, but do I ever pray? ................................. 428
I pray for strength, O God!........................................................... 429
I will not let thee go ..................................................................... 423
Importunity .................................................................. 270, 337, 499
In even savage bosoms .............................................................. 430
In such a self-forgetful way.................................................. 208, 433
In very love refuse ....................................................................... 432
Intercession ................................................................................. 467
Intercessory ....................................... 106, 209, 210, 211, 243, 499
Intercessory Prayer
The Test of our Praying ........................................................... 211
Who and What ......................................................................... 209
Irons ..................................................................................... 149, 483
483
Isaiah 56
5-8 .............................................................................................. 59
Jesus Teaching on Prayer .......................... 154
Jesus’ Dying Prayers .................................................................... 83
Jn 2
1-11 ............................................................................................ 98
Jos 23
10 ............................................................................................... 62
Joy in Prayer ............................................................................... 214
Jud 7
2 ................................................................................................. 62
Jude 20 ....................................................................................... 162
Large petitions with thee bring .................................................... 473
Less than Thyself will not suffice ................................................. 432
Let us lift up our heart ................................................................. 219
Lips cry ........................................................................................ 432
Lk 11
13 ............................................................................................ 170
Load, I approach thy throne of grace .......................................... 434
Lord of the Sabbath, Hear Us Pray ............................................. 438
Lord, Listen to Your Children.................................................. 437
Lord, help me live ................................................................ 208, 433
Lord, I cannot let Thee go ........................................................... 436
Lord, I have shut the door ................................................... 433, 437
Lord, I have wrestled through the livelong night .......................... 434
Lord, till I reach yon blissful shore ............................................... 443
Lord, what a change within us one short hour ............................. 439
Love thy God, and love Him only ................................................ 439
Manifest Presence ...................................................................... 185
Marsh .......................................................................................... 204
Mary’s Example in Prayer ............................................................. 98
Matt 6:9-13 .................................................................................. 126
Michelangelo ............................................................................... 469
Milton .................................................................................. 178, 482
Ministry of Intercession ............................................................... 467
Missions ...................................................................................... 221
Mk 11
15-17 .......................................................................................... 59
Monod ......................................................................................... 403
Moravian Hymn ........................................................................... 422
Moravian Prayer Experience ....................................................... 290
More Love to Thee, O Christ ....................................................... 440
Murray Andrew .............................................................................. 469
My dumb lips breathe and into utterance wake ........................... 473
My God! Is any hour so sweet ..................................................... 443
My God. how wonderful Thou art! ............................................... 442
484
Newton ......... 221, 227, 271, 393, 400, 408, 423, 428, 453, 473, 477
Newton, John .............................................................................. 477
No time to pray! ..................................................................... 229, 445
Not only wait, but watch .............................................................. 446
O watch and fight, ....................................................................... 451
Oh, closer every day ................................................................... 450
Oh, what peace we often forfeit!.................................................. 450
Oh, ye who sigh and languish ..................................................... 450
On Opening a Place for Social Prayer ........................................ 450
Others, Paul’s Prayers for ........................................................... 106
Our Continual Responsibility to Pray........................................... 100
Our Ever Giving God ..................................................................... 72
Paul’s Prayer for the Colosse Christians ..................................... 102
Paul’s Prayers for Others ............................................................ 106
Paul’s Requests for Prayer.......................................................... 105
Payson ........................................................................................ 288
Persistent Praying ....................................................................... 121
Praise Him.................................................................................. 451
Pray Big for God’s glory .............................................................. 226
Pray for Kings & Governments .................................................... 283
Pray the Lord of the Harvest ....................................................... 235
Pray without ceasing ..................................................................... 89
Prayer Meetings ........................................................................... 85
Prayer and Revival ...................................................................... 279
Prayer Answered by Crosses ...................................................... 453
Prayer changes things ................................................................ 454
Prayer is the simplest form of speech ......................................... 454
Prayer is the soul’s sincere desire ............................................... 455
Prayer makes darkened clouds withdraw .................................... 455
Prayer of Faith ............................................................................. 500
Prayer Terminology ..................................................................... 498
Pray-er’s Attitude ......................................................................... 232
Prayers and praises go in pairs ....................................................... 456
Prayerwalking .............................................................................. 499
Prayer--What it Does ................................................................... 228
Praying in the Holy Ghost............................................................ 162
Praying in the Name of Christ ..................................................... 152
Preaching, Praying for ................................................................. 230
Prevailing Prayer as seen in Jacob ............................................... 64
Prevenient Praying ...................................................................... 240
Prison Praying ............................................................................. 116
Ps 25 ............................................................................................. 57
Psa 91:15 .................................................................................... 406
Resurrection, We have Prayer because there was a .................. 114
Rom 11
36 ............................................................................................ 139
485
Rom 12:9-13 ............................................................................... 101
Rom 8
22-27 ....................................................................................... 168
Rom 8:26..................................................................................... 402
Saphir .......................................................................................... 360
Scripture for Praying ................................................................... 493
Sharp .......................................................................................... 434
Shepherd Divine, our wants relieve ............................................. 458
Son 3:4 ........................................................................................ 423
Speaking to the Rock .................................................................... 69
Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings............................ 168
Spirit of the living God, ................................................................ 459
Spiritual Attitude for Prayer ......................................................... 126
Spurgeon, The Testimony of C.H. ............................................... 296
Steadfast Devotion to Prayer ...................................................... 108
Steal Away .................................................................................. 459
Straitenings in Prayer .................................................................. 500
Supplication in Prayer ................................................................. 193
Sweet Hour of Prayer .................................................................. 460
Take Time to be Holy .................................................................. 461
Teach Me to Pray, Lord ............................................................... 461
Thanksgiving in Prayer ................................................................ 189
The Beautiful Garden of Prayer ................................................... 463
The Difference............................................................................. 463
The Lord Has Heard and Answered Prayer .................................. 465
The Prayer Life of Jesus ............................................................. 470
The prayers I make will then be sweet ........................................ 469
The proper way for a man to pray ............................................... 471
The Proper Way to Pray .............................................................. 471
The School of Prayer Part 1 ........................................................ 242
The School of Prayer Part 2
The Content of Prayer ............................................................. 245
The School of Prayer Part 3
Importunity ............................................................................... 249
The School of Prayer Part 4
A Package Deal ....................................................................... 252
The silent pleading ...................................................................... 472
The victories won by prayer ........................................................ 472
There are heights ........................................................................ 472
There are heights of sweet communion ...................................... 472
They tell me, Lord, that when I seem .......................................... 472
This prayer is not his own............................................................ 474
Thou art coming to a King ........................................................... 473
Thou knowest the way to bring me back ..................................... 474
Though I’m but dust, I pray.......................................................... 473
Thy promise is my only plea ........................................................ 475
486
Thy promise, Lord, is ever sure ................................................... 475
Tis a point I long to know............................................................. 476
Tis not to those who stand erect ................................................. 474
Tis the Blessed Hour of Prayer ................................................... 477
To God your every want ................................................................. 477
Torrey .......................................................................................... 278
Trench ......................................................................................... 439
Trials make the promise sweet .................................................... 479
Trinitarian Aspect of Prayer, The ................................................. 139
Two went to pray ........................................................................... 480
Ultimate Answer to Prayer, The .................................................. 111
Unanswered yet? ................................................................ 123, 480
Unison prayer .............................................................................. 500
Unpossessed Possessions ......................................................... 255
Violent Praying ............................................................................ 257
We have Prayer because there was a Resurrection ................... 114
Wesley ................................................................................ 365, 416
What a Friend We Have in Jesus ................................................ 481
What better can we do ................................................................ 482
WHAT PRAYER IS Part 1 ........................................................... 260
WHAT PRAYER IS Part 2 ........................................................... 261
WHAT PRAYER IS Part 3 ........................................................... 263
WHAT PRAYER IS Part 4 ........................................................... 266
WHAT PRAYER IS Part 5 ........................................................... 267
WHAT PRAYER IS Part 6 ........................................................... 268
WHAT PRAYER IS Part 7 ........................................................... 269
What wond’rous grace ........................................................... 148, 483
Who What Why .......................................................................... 307
Who, What, Why ........................................................................ 308
Why Importunity Is Needed ......................................................... 270
Why need he pray, ...................................................................... 488
Ye poor afflicted souls, give ear .................................................. 489
Yes, there's a power ...................................................................... 490
487