The Weapons of our Warfare

PRAYER

There is a universal hunger in the hearts of God's children to find real consistency in prayer.

I. We have a marvelous weapon in prayer.

1. Prayer can be superficial. Ex. 10:17.

2. Prayer can be extreme. Ex. 32:32.

3. Prayer can be intercession for a nation. Numbers 21 :7.

4. Prayer for friends can bring personal deliverance. Job 42:10.

5. Prayer is proper in case of national calamity. I Kings 8:35.

6. Prayer brings healing.

a. Abraham prayed for Abimilech's household. Gen. 20: 17.
b. Man of God prays for Jeroboam's paralyzed hand. I Kings 13:6.
c. Elijah raises a child from the dead. I Kings 17:21.

7. Prayer opens the spiritual eyes. II Kings 4:33.

8. Prayer is for the afflicted. James 5: 13.

9. Prayer brings revival. II Chron. 7:14.

10. Prayer should be offered for political leaders. Ezra 6: 10; I Tim 2:2.

11. Prayer may be used against evil men. II Kings 19:20.

12. Prayer runs in families. A praying woman mothered a praying son. I Sam. 8:6.

13. Prayer together is especially powerful. II Chron. 32:20; Matthew 18:19; Acts 2:1.

14. Prayer should be directed to Almighty God. Ps. 5:2. (Satan craves prayer too!)

15. Prayer identifies the godly. Ps. 32:6.

16. Prayer may be for the peace of Jerusalem (Ps. 122:6) or any city (Jer. 29:7).

17. Prayer is sometimes improper. Jer. 7:16,11:14,14:11; I John 5: 16.

18. Prayer is an honorable and respectable occupation. Zech 7:2. 11

19. Prayer brings new workers into God s work. Matt. 9: 38.

20. Prayer retreats have biblical precedent and precede the miraculous. Matt. 14:23.

21. Prayer and the laying on of hands go together. Matt. 19: 13. (See appendix.)

22. Prayer protects against temptation. Matt. 26:41.

23. Prayer and faith walk together. Mk. 11 :24.

24. Prayer needs to be learned. Romans 8:26.

25. Prayer can be taught. Luke 11: 1.

26. Prayer is a solemn obligation. Lk. 18: 1

27. Prayer failure is sin. I Sam. 12:23.

28. Prayer by women not under authority is dangerous. I Cor. 11:13.

29. Prayer for interpreting powers is ordered for those that speak in tongues. I Cor. 14:13.

30. Prayer in an unknown tongue is prayer of the human spirit which may not be understood by the mind. I Cor. 14: 14.

31. Prayer multiplies love. Phil. 1:9.

32. Prayer is to be without ceasing. I Thess. 5: 17.

33. Prayer posture varies:

a. Lifting up of hands. I Tim. 2:8.
b. Kneeling. Acts 9:40.
c. Prostration. Matt. 26:39.

34. Prayer is result orientated. John 16:23.

II. We have infirmity in prayer.

"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. 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." Romans 8:26, 27.

A. We do not know what to pray for as we ought. v. 26.

B. The disciples recognized this infirmity when they said to the Lord, "teach us to pray." Luke 11: 1.

C. There is much vain repetition in our praying and many prayers are not answered.

III. We have intercessors for our prayer.

A. The Holy Spirit intercedes for us. Romans 8:26.

B. Jesus Christ intercedes for us. Romans 8:26.

C. "And so there is a divine and most perfect provision in the economy of grace by which the Holy Spirit adjusts our spirit into such harmony with God that we can catch His thought and send it back again, not merely as a human desire but as a divine prayer. True prayer, therefore, is not only the voice of man crying to God, but the voice of God in man expressing the deepest needs of the human heart and conveying them to the throne in such a manner that the answer shall be assured." -A. B. Simpson.

IV. We may have confidence in prayer.

A. Our Intercessors make intercession for us according to the will of God. Romans 8:26, 27.

B. When we know the will of God, we ought to pray only with confidence. I John 5: 14, 15.

C. When God can plant the divine prayer in our hearts, we will pray, it will be the will of God, He will give us confidence, and He will answer.

V. We have an obligation in prayer.

A. We are not to be unwise, but rather to know what the will of the Lord is. Eph. 5: 17.

B. Knowing the will of God is associated with being filled with th Holy Spirit. Eph. 5:18.

VI. We have the Christ of prayer. John 14:20.

Exhortation: True prayer is not from the believer to God. It comes from the Father, through the Son (Heb. 7:25), to the believer (Romans 8:26), through the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:26, 27), and back to God. Prayer is a divine circle.

Next: Praise