September 28, 2017
An Attempt to Promote & Employ a spirit of Prevailing, Sustained Prayer for our nation and the church to meet the need that is presently upon us to impact our near future.
(Yes, I have attempted to use such a long title after the manner of Jonathan Edwards did for the revival of prayer among the churches in the 1700's, here in America).
Jonathan Edwards and Scottish pastor, Rev. John Erskine, both approached the days of their ministry that the church was largely & greatly lacking the power of the Holy Ghost. And that the need to address this and overcome this sin was by days of prayer, fasting and coming together each month. They set the standard for such a time of prayer, that was to their day and ours, abnormal. They rose above the standard of church prayer to bring others with them, to grow in holiness before the Lord. all of which we know led to the Great Awakening. a burden, a response, a result by God, for God and in God. such is needed today.
The historical accounts of prayer meetings of old, serve as valuable testimonies of God's desire to implement His will and power upon His church. To see such a prayer meeting accomplish the task of reaching the ends of the earth with the Gospel is our goal in front of us. This can only be done, with the Divine breath of His Holy Spirit to fall just as it did on the day of Pentecost.
Let us look at 3 such prayer meetings that God did what He wanted to do when He found a praying people:
1. The day of Pentecost;
--the Lord had commanded His followers, 'Go into Jerusalem and wait there until you be endued with power from on high.' The disciples and followers of Christ gathered in the Upper Room for 10 days, in fellowship, in prayer and the Lord came in power. For on the 10th day, early in the morning, the HOly Ghost descended on those there and filled them with power of God's right hand. Peter then speaking the Word in that power, witnessed 3000 souls be saved. They waited 10 days, before the Lord, in prayer and fellowship and God came.
2. The 100 year prayer meeting;
Count Zinzendorf had opened his home to persecuted brethren. These brethren were of different beliefs and conceptions of Christianity. But organizing this group and instituting small group prayer for the group led to a conclusive, ordered form of theological beliefs that set the tone for unity among the brethren. And on aug. 13, 1727 the Lord came down on this group which ushered in a 24/7 prayer meeting lasting over 100 years. And out of this continual prayer movement, great evangelistic theme for missions were born and engineered by the Holy Spirit to usher men into the nations with the Gospel.
3. New Year's Eve outpouring on Wesley's, Whitefield in January 1, 1739 ;
The Wesley brothers, George Whitefield, and others had gathered for a night of prayer for the New Year. during those hours of prayer, God was getting ready the great work of the 1700's to be set forth by these men. And at 3:00 AM in the midst of prayers, God came and showed up. And all at the same time they uttered, 'WE praise Thee O God; we acknowledge Thee to be the Lord". They went out from that meeting, filled and ready to be used by God. The Wesley to form the groups of Methodists to procure holiness and after their death, the Methodist denomination. And George Whitefield to be anointed to become a great catalyst for revival in England, but more so for the US. such a powerful moment, that God used of men being in prayer before the Lord for the purpose of the Lord.
What is Needed?
The prayer that is needed is that which accomplishes all that the Father desires. This is composed of some of the following: (not focused here on physical, carnal, temporal; but rather spiritual, eternal & divine)
--prevail with Him;
--glorify Him;
--sweet aroma to Him;
--His Divine will done;
--it is spiritual and eternal;
--His promises fulfilled;
--His purposes attended too;
What it is not:
--it is not selfish;
--it is not contrary to the will or ways of God;
--it is not unbelieving;
--it is not humanistic;
--it is not sinful;
--is not obtained or sustained in the flesh;
An active look to see where the prayer movement is; accomplishing the purposes or not accomplishing the purposes of God.
Priority/Purpose of Prayer
1. It glorifies the Lord.
2. It maintains and sustains and permeates church with holiness. (Without holiness no man shall see the Lord)
3. It accomplishes the will of the Father in the lives and purpose of His kingdom. (Thy will be done, here on earth, just as it is in heaven; How is the Father's will done in heaven? perfectly)
4. Provides that which only God Himself can give for the spiritual needs.
(It is not my intent to overlook the needs, wants and prayer for the necessities of the physical, sick, provisions of our needs. However, the focus of this writing on prayer is for the focus of the spiritual, the eternal, the purposes of His kingdom.)
Implement a Divine saturated moment(s) of time filled with the prayers of the saints for the will of God to be done.
what is it that I am requesting and see the need for?
1. A Concise, Cumulative approach to prevailing prayer.
--for the greater part of those that wish to continue to emphasize that the prayer movement is growing, I will not debate nor disagree with here; However, as we would look at the whole, we cannot say that the church body is spiritually healthy in engaging in prevailing prayer. That somewhere between 80 - 90 % of congregations have no established corporate prayer times. This is consistent each week of services, each month, yea and the whole year.
--prayer is not experienced by most Christians and they often confess that they have no prayer life, in the pulpit and in the pews.
--therefore an established pattern of teaching, modeling, encouraging, establishing, set prayer times in churches, in associations, regions, and states for the absolute necessity of prevailing for our Lord's will and growth of His kingdom;
--the necessity of this is that we are in a critical junction of time/history and much will be done and dealt with in the near future; The very hope of the church is to finish the task, of reaching the world for Christ and the Gospel into their languages, hearts, tribes, homes, families and areas. A finished, successful praying movement much like the 3 examples in opening can complete the task at hand. Supernaturally prevailing with God for the Divine outpouring will lead to finances provided, technology increased, missionaries raised up and sent and God's Divine Presence covering the world.
2. Pray without Ceasing.
a 24/7 movement, that is generated for the whole of the nation, for the church. Focused on the spiritual truths and appetites mentioned in #1;
We know the commands:
Pray with ceasing; I give myself unto prayer; the prayers of a righteous man availeth much; continue in prayer; all of these Scriptures commanding a right response with the people. and yet, the greatest confession out of the church is that we are a people/person greatly affected with the sin of prayerlessness.
Protracted meetings. Too long we have become more prone to an hour, rarely two of prayer meetings. We sing, 'Sweet Hour of Prayer' but few ever know the truth of a sweet hour in prayer. Set times, meetings, days to be before the Lord is necessary. and too often when such meeting are in place, much time is given to music, fellowship, food, preaching/teaching but little time is devoted to prayer. Prayer must become the real thing, the main thing, and give time and place to the other things after prayer, not in place of it, or before it.
3. Gather the body together to implement and employ this task.
There are several groups that in most recent years have undertaken this task and I agree with their plan. The remnant is largely scattered abroad in remote places, and sometimes heavier concentration of people in prayer. It is always encouraging to see and hear of the remnant gathered together in prayer. However, the issue is that this normally at a conference, a remote gathering of one and done. the sustained work that is needful is a prevailing, consistent, permeating spirit of prayer that is continual, consistent, and contagious.
A devoted means of energy to establish, set, employ times, dates and places for accopmlishing this. To be considered in churches, areas, other denominations, ready to meet and pray.
Why is this needed?
the need of the hour should press the church to lean in to the throne room of God and prevail for His Name sake. However, in the present age of the church, the greater part of the church is not where they should be in relationship and obedience. They are not where they need to be with the Lord. There is a powerlessness among the church today. Of which, Satan makes the most of, and the kingdom of God struggles against Satan, sin and self. where is the victory? where is the power? where is the holiness? where is the prevailing? where is the miracles? And in all these things the need for enduement of power from on high has never been greater.
1. Holiness is eroded away to a lesser standard than what the Scripture clearly teaches.
2. Powerlessness within the church is evident. There is growing cry for this, 'We need Your power O God'. This power is not for selfish means, but overcoming, victory, souls, gain ground and push back darkness.
3. Too much gain by hell and evil in the minds, hearts, lives, homes, cities and our nation. Impacting an even worse scenario for the near future of greater evil.
God's purpose and intent, yea, His Divine will is that all should be saved. His glory is manifest by His glory and those that are imparted with it through holy living and being. The power of the Spirit works through such people for the fulfillment of His desired end that all the world should hear, see, know and experience the truth of the Lord; there is no other god but Me. Without the fullness of the Spirit, the church labors along in weakness, in pathetic attempt to do the work, often by humanistic means. This only enables Satan to thrust sorely upon the body of Christ even more so. Thus many of the brethren, have given an occasion against the Lord.
When the church leaves its first love it creates the vacum need for central truth. Satan is so quick to rush in and fill it with deception, lies and wickedness. False preachers, teachers, sordid miracles, emotionalism all of which to crush the faith and truth and cause men to doubt and say, 'Hath God said?' The church causes the greater evil in their departure from the good and right way. If you are not gaining in holiness and righteousness then evil and sin will be the dominant force in the minds, hearts and lives of so many.
Started: September 28, 2017
Continued: 9/29;
Finished:
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