Prayer as a Definite Work

Prayer is a very definite work, as much as the “work” of preaching is to the Evangelist. Turn then to James 5:16, “The effective fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” There is a work accomplished when prayer is powerfully effective, but it must be the “supplication of a righteous man!” Not only righteous by imputed righteousness, on account of Christ’s righteousness, but righteous in his attitude to sin, and in the personal life. This is an absolute condition for the prayer that works! The first question therefore is: if you want to understand and to know true prevailing prayer that will move God to fulfil your desire; Are you living in personal victory? Do you want to live in personal victory? Are you determined to live in personal victory? There are many who talk about victory who are not willing to fulfil the conditions of victory.

Now observe how prayer worked in the example mentioned by James. The Apostle refers to Elijah and says: “Elijah was a man with a nature like ours,” and then proceeds to show the effects of his prayer. As much as to say, what is possible to Elijah is possible to you. “He prayed earnestly that it might not rain, and it didn’t rain.” This man had power to close the heavens, yet he was a man with “a nature like ours.” His effectual prayer was truly such a definite work, that when he prayed that the heavens should not give rain, there was no rain. To be able to pray so that the heavens close over a whole country is “work” indeed.

Prayer to many is something to be done when there is a bit of free time, as and when it fits for me and even then quite rarely. But prayer is a definite work, which should be the greatest and vastest issue for the children of God, and greater than any other service to be done on the earth, if the soul understood how to pray. What we need is to first and foremost believe in the possibilities of such prayer, and to set ourselves to know God, so that we could pray like Elijah. that we can avail ourselves of the power of prayer. If you could learn to know God, so as to know the mind of God when God wanted such and such a thing done, you could pray like Elijah. Elijah both knew God, and he knew the will of God so as to pray the prayer that worked to the salvation of Israel. You, too, could cooperate with God in the same way, if you knew God’s will.

From this brief glimpse of Elijah, let us look at another picture of this work of prayer, or rather, the prayer that “works.” Let us glance at Exodus 17 where Moses, and his “binding and loosing” are at work. Israel was in desperate need of water, and in that need, they began to reproach Moses, saying, “Moses brought us out of Egypt, now let him give us water to drink.” Moses just went to God. “He cried to the Lord” for the needs of the people, and then the Lord told him what to do. He was to go to a certain rock and stand face to face before God, and then “I will stand before you . . . you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it.”.Moses did as he was commanded, and there was water.

But in the same chapter we have another aspect of prayer altogether. Amalek came against Israel in an attack. Moses did not “cry” to the Lord then, for he knew what to do. Taking the rod of God, he would stand on the top of the hill, and lift up his hands, whilst Joshua went to the valley to fight the enemy. When Moses’ hands went down, Amalek prevailed, and when he kept them up Israel prevailed. What was Moses doing? Surely lifting his hands against the unseen enemy, which were the Satanic forces, behind Amalek attacking the people of God.

To understand this, you must remember that the last verse of the chapter it says, as it says in many other places “And He said for the hand is on the throne of the Lord and He has sworn that He will have war with Amalek from generation to generation. When the idolatrous heathen attacked Israel, Moses knew what to do. Here then are two aspects of prayer illustrated in these incidents—the aspect of supplication, in Moses going to God, and pleading for the people, “Lord, give them water!” and the other of standing with God against the enemy, when he took the attitude of uplifted hands. We might say: “Moses, why don’t you go and fight in the valley?” But he would reply: “I am fighting; Joshua is dealing with flesh and blood down there, but I am dealing with something else up here. I have the rod of God in my hand.” And in that position of quiet resistance and confidence in God, Moses fought the enemy with God, his steady hands held up until sunset and victory was complete. And Joshua defeated Amalek and his people at the edge of his sword. It was not such easy work as when Moses went to God, and pleaded for the people, and said “Lord, give them water!” As he assumed a seemingly passive position. At the end of the chapter the key to Moses’ action is given in the words, “The Lord is my banner!” In lifting his hands with the rod of God, Moses was lifting a banner against the unseen enemies.

It is a striking picture of the two aspects of the work of prayer. In Elijah you see the binding and losing power of his prayer for a whole land, and in Moses you see the “binding” of the enemy’s power, and the loosing of water for the needs of the Lord’s people.

If we turn again to the acts of the Apostles’ attitude to prayer, we shall see how to them prayer was a work. There was trouble to that Spirit-filled Church, a complaint arose in the church regarding the neglect taking place during the daily distribution of relief. In the midst of this the Apostle didn’t say: “we will give ourselves to” putting this matter straight? No. But “we will give ourselves to prayer, and to the ministry of the Word.” The early Church knew how to pray. They knew how to open the prison doors for Peter. They did not go with a petition to Herod but took upon themselves to “instant and earnest prayer.” That was praying that “worked.” We are responsible for the things over which we have not prayed, we are responsible for how it is in the assembly. Most people spend their whole lives praying in private. Would Elijah have had that mighty, effective prayer, if he had spent all the time in “prayer” simply for his own personal growth? No wonder we do not understand that prayer is a work, and that every prayer should accomplish something. Now let us take the example of Paul in his work of prayer for the Churches, and individual believers. First, see how Paul himself craved the prayers of the saints he addressed, although he was a man full of the power of the Holy Spirit who knew God, and yet almost with tears he pleads that the church should join him in prayer. Do you pray for those who stand in the gap? Do you pray for those who labour for your sake? Take Pauls prayers for the Ephesians, for the Philippians, and other believers, and if you want to know how to pray in the will of God for others, pray those prayers. Briefly, what did Paul ask for himself? Romans 15:30, “Now I beg you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, that you strive together with me in your prayers to God for me.” Now here was a definite co-working of Paul and the saints in the prayer for himself. He said, “Strive with me.” Do you know how to “strive” for another in prayer? If two people pray, and one has an intense burning spirit, with a deep purpose towards God, and the other is just as weak as the other is intense, without purpose, without intensity; then there is no “striving together.” Do you know the way to “strive together” is by praying with one united spirit?

Notice too what he prayed for. “Pray,” for he said, “for me, that I may be delivered.” What, Paul? Yes; “Delivered from the unbelievers . . .” Yes, pray for God’s messengers that they may be delivered from opposition and difficulty in their service. Paul said, “. . . pray that my ministry may be acceptable . . .” There were prayers behind Paul! Possibly Paul did not know one half of what God was doing with him for His church. He lived his life in pressure, and conflict, and suffering, and service; hardly dreaming what God was doing for the whole Church of Christ through him. Mighty man of God as Paul was, he was asking for the support of others’ prayers. The ministers of the Lord needed this ceaseless striving together in prayer with him, in all the places that he went to with God’s message, until his task was done.

Paul needed prayers for open doors. “Continue steadfastly in prayer, watching in it with thanksgiving; praying together for us also, that God may open to us a door for the word, to speak the mystery of Christ” (Colossians 4:2-3). In 2 Thessalonians 3:1-3, Paul wrote again: “Finally, brothers, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may spread rapidly and be glorified.” On the one hand, they should pray for open doors to the word, and on the other hand, that the word may have progress. Pray about everything and anything; prayer, prayer, prayer; the work of prayer. This is the matter with the church: lack of prayer, lack of the work of prayer, lack of definiteness in prayer. Often one prays for more power, but more definite prayer, prayer focused on the right points, and you would see the thing that is needed. Through prayer all the hindrances to power will be removed. We need to understand definite prayer to God to open doors, and to make the word progress, i.e., the driving power of prayer. But for that, we must also understand the hindrances. You must see the thing that is needed in the church and drive prayer onto it until the door is opened. Be careful in your prayer, so that you do not constantly ask God for what you already have, if the door is open, you need not pray for it to be opened. If, for example, you have the spirit of prayer, then you do not need to ask to receive Him. Here is where intelligence in prayer comes in, and where learning to know God comes in. Yes, and something more, the need of knowing the enemy who hinders the work. Every step that Paul took was in the teeth of the enemy. He was dogged right through the whole of his life after his conversion, with opposition before him, and men spoiling his work behind him. Read the life of Pauls sojourn here below, and you will discover that he did not have an easy time of it; but he had victory right along the line. So, no servant of God preaching a pure gospel will get open doors today if Satan can close them. We have got to bind the strong man!! by prayer! If we do not know how to pray this kind of prayer and have others to strive together with us in prayer, then Satan’s way is blocked! We must first bind Satan if souls are to be freed.