- Overcomer Literature Trust
- Swindon
- Wiltshire
THE WORK OF PRAYER.
By Mrs. Jessie Penn-Lewis.
All too often prayer is look upon as an occasional outward flow or burst of feeling and desire, but in Colossians 4 verse 12, prayer is called work. After conveying the salutations of Epaphras, Paul describes him as “wrestling in prayer”. The Apostle James, speaking from experience writes, “The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective”. This is work.
The working of prayer for a whole nation is clearly seen in the life of Elijah, of whom it is written, “Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years” (James 5 v17). That was the binding power of Elijah’s prayers. Then we read, “again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain”. He had bound the rain from coming down and now he looses the heavens that the rain should water the earth, and he did both at the direct command of God. He acted according to and in full harmony with the mind of God, entirely depending upon God to honour His own Word and respond to His prophet’s heaven-born faith. This opening and closing of the heavens is a mighty example of the power of prayer, and illustrates excellently our Lord’s word recorded in Matthew’s Gospel, “Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven” (Matt. 16 v19).
Moses was another mighty man of prevailing prayer. Here, as in the case of Elijah, great blessing came to the nation when he loosed the waters to quench the thirsting people and their cattle (Num. 20 v11), and when Israel was set upon by Amalek, he with uplifted hands and a praying spirit, bound the enemy (Ex. 17 v11). It is a wonderful picture of the effect of prayer by one man who lived and walked closely with God, understanding the exact demand of His laws in prayer.
In the book of Acts prayer was the practice of the early Church. In the midst of all the blessing of the days of Pentecost the Apostles said, “We will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the Word” (Acts 6 v4). Prayer first, preaching second. They knew so well what the work of prayer meant in preparing the way for the utterance of the Word.
It is tempting to say, ‘there is so much to be done’. Your prayer is needed for the Church and if we give ourselves to prayer how great will be the work of binding the evil and loosing the good. See how the early Church loosed Peter out of prison. They did not go to Herod and present a petition, they simply went to God in prayer, and those who were gathered together were utterly astonished and could not believe it when God answered.
So often we relegate our prayers to a certain hour in the morning and perhaps ten minutes at night and occasionally a prayer meeting, but what do we know about the mighty exercise of prayer, working all day long? When you understand the warfare with the enemy you will pray about everything. As certainly as you leave something un-prayed for it will become an open door for the enemy to slide in. How can you learn this working prayer? You think you cannot possibly remember all that needs safe-guarding. That is just where you need to ask for the Holy Spirit’s help because He makes intercession for us and will pour into your spirit prayers “in accordance with God’s will” (Rom. 8 v26-27), as you live and walk in the Spirit. By His help you will remember and pray comprehensive prayers. Pray in advance, forestalling the enemy.
In the Epistles you will find prayers for the whole Church of Christ. If you want to know how to pray for believers read Paul’s prayers and pray them for God’s people to-day. What did Epaphras pray? He wrestled in prayer that the Colossians should “stand firm in all the will of God” (Col. 4 v12). Sometimes you get requests for prayer and you do not know what to ask for, but you can at least pray ‘God’s will be done for that person’. Pray for the Church in the terms of Paul’s prayers and pray for the messengers of God that in proclaiming the message their proclamation may be clear, strong and convicting. Turn to Paul’s prayer in Romans 15 v30-32, “I urge you, brothers . . . to join with me in my struggle by praying to God for me”.
That was Paul's request for co-operation in prayer. He knew perfectly well that when he went to Jerusalem it would be a most difficult time. There was a section of the believers who wanted to retain their Jewish religion and would resist and oppose him, so he asked his fellow-believers to co-operate in prayer that he might meet and overcome the dangers and difficulties before him.
In 2 Corinthians 1 v8-11, we have Paul’s request for prayer for deliverance from pressure. Surely that is a mistake, surely Paul was never so pressed. Yes he was, “far beyond our ability to endure”, almost beyond the possibilities of his nature, so that he despaired even of life. So he asks for the prayers of his fellow-believers and adds that he expects that God will deliver him through their prayers.
In Colossians there is a prayer for open doors. Surely everyone will open doors for Paul to preach. Will they? The great Apostle Paul we know of to-day was then only a despised follower of the Nazarene. We put a halo around him and other Bible characters so that we do not realize how much their lives were like ours. Probably Paul went through the awful pressure of his life-work hardly realizing what it would produce. It is only generations later that the true fruit is seen. He struggled and suffered, driven by circumstances from place to place, let down over a wall in a basket to escape his enemies. Every step of his path was dogged by opposition and the plots of the Jews to destroy him, his life and message were always in jeopardy. He went through all this and more, upheld by God and praying his way through all his testing trials and circumstances, and God let him go through them in order that he might bear fruit.
God’s victories often look like defeats. It is victory in the unseen realm while one is absolutely down and out in the visible world. It was so at Calvary, so in the life of Paul and so in the life of Peter. You will not be disturbed by the conflict, the opposition, the betrayal of friends, but will keep your soul in patience, filled with the love of God.
It is a great help to know that Paul prayed that doors of utterance might be given to him, and that “the message of the Lord may spread rapidly” (2 Thess. 3 v1). How can the Word spread when you do not pray for it? It is prayer that sends it. Do you pray like this for God’s messengers and their message? Pray for all those who are entrusted with God’s messages. Pray that they may be delivered from the disobedient, that they may be accepted with their message, that they may go only where they are sent by God, nor allow themselves to be sent by anyone else. When the pressure comes upon them and they despair even of life, pray for them, they need someone else to pray them through. Pray that doors may be opened for God’s messengers of the Cross, and liberty to give the message. Many are willing to give themselves to the work of talking, but how few to the work of praying? If you will stand with someone you see has a real message and pray, ‘Lord, give them ability, let Your Word spread’, that is the work of prayer.
All day long there can come from you, in union with Christ, this continual working in prayer. You must not wait for an impulse to pray but rather pray deliberately, quietly asking God and trusting Him to answer according to His Word. Many Christians attend a prayer meeting to get right with God or to get communion with God when they ought to have lived in that all day and go to the meeting for definite work. There is a vast work to be done in prayer and these working prayer meetings are the greatest need in the Church to-day. Pray for the ones in the pulpit that they may be given ability to proclaim God’s Word. That is one side of it. There is another which will cause you to pray like this, ‘Lord, see what Satan is doing, bind him Lord and bring to nought all his purposes’. “Our wrestling is not against flesh and blood”, but against a foe who can only be dealt with in union with the Throne of God. I wish that the Church had known how to protect ministers by prayer so that they did not drift into preaching that which is not the gospel. Can I inspire you to the work of prayer so that it will be more precious than going to a meeting to listen and trying to get a blessing for yourselves? Think of the Lord Jesus, interceding at God’s right hand. He is one of two Advocates, the Holy Spirit is the other, interceding for us and in us, teaching us how to pray. He will direct our prayers into the will of God so that we may prove the working power of prayer.
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