August 10, 2016

PRAYER THOUGHT:  "Talking to men for God is a great thing, but talking to God for men is greater still.  He who has not learned well how to talk to God for men will never talk well and with real success to men for God."  Bounds

Acts 4:31 NKJV - "And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness."

Commentary:

There is a sense of real urgency in my own heart about this!  Praying on behalf of people to God is the real way to make our speaking on behalf of God to people successful.  Bringing people to God in prayer makes for being able to bring God to people in our witness.  And, more than ever, we need to pray for boldness in our witness!  The hearts of men have been captured by sin and the only way to penetrate those sinful hearts with the dynamic power of the Gospel of Christ is through the penetrating power of prayer!  God moves in people's hearts when our prayers move the hand of God!  I'm not speaking carelessly here.  I remember saying years and years ago that God has ordained it that as we pray He works!  Our prayers influence God's actions! 

I know, there is bound to be objections.  Most of us were taught about the sovereignty of God and His ability to do what He pleases and how He pleases without our interference or influence on Him.  But there is no taking away from God's sovereign ability if He makes the choice and establishes the plan that He would move when Christians would pray!  That's God's choice.  Like it or not, He brings a "shaking" in our lives when we plead for His power in our lives!  That's what happened in Acts 4:31 and what needs to happen in Christian lives everywhere!

And this is important in our praying for those who preach and teach and witness.  Our lifting them up to our God enables them to be more effective in their work.  Ephesians 6:18,19, "Praying always...for me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel."

Who will sense the urgency to pray for the souls of men?  Who will pray for those who preach, teach, and witness that God would bless them with boldness, clarity, and effectiveness in their witness?