The Lord’s Prayer-Final
The goal of this article:
Not one of us could say that we have achieved all we need to know about prayer I have been a believer for over sixty-five years and I am still learning. Our goal with this article is to discover how we can be more effective and disciplined in our prayer life by using the model prayer Jesus taught His disciples. By using this prayer as a model our prayers are ordered according to God’s direction and as a result we are not praying without purpose or order. This also helps to keep our minds from wandering to other things while we are praying!
1.” Lord, teach us to pray”:
Jesus is our great example in our prayer life. The disciples had observed Jesus’ prayer life. They saw how very early in the morning while it was still dark, Jesus got up and went to a lonely place to pray (Mark1:35). They saw how he went to a mountainside to pray and spent the night praying to God (Luke 6:12). They saw how that He often withdrew to lonely places and prayed (Luke 5:16). He lived a life of intimate fellowship with His father: He not only conversed with His Father, but since He came to do the Father’s will, He also listened to His voice for guidance and direction. No wonder the disciples asked Him: “Lord teach us to pray (Luke 11:1). In answer to their question Jesus gave to them the model prayer commonly called the Lord’s Prayer. This is a very deep and profound prayer. This is found in Matthew 6:9-13:
In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen. (Matthew 6:9-13 NKJV)
The repeating of this prayer that Jesus taught His disciples has become a ritual in many churches and for many people. To only repeat this prayer it would take about a minute or two of our time But Jesus said, “This is how you should pray” not what you should pray. In this prayer Jesus gave us a pattern or a model of how we should pray. When we really learn the depths of this prayer we will see that to pray it effectively it could take several minutes of our time to pray!
2 How, where and when we should pray:
(a) We should pray at all times as well as regularly at a set time:
(1) Praying Regularily:
“Could you men not keep watch with me for one hour…Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing but the body is weak.”(Matthew 26:40-41)
Jesus is challenging His disciples to watch with Him for one hour. He warns them about the weakness of the flesh. For example the flesh will complain terribly for having to wake up early to wait upon God, it would rather sleep and rest, it would rather read something interesting, it would rather see a video, DVD, or watch a TV program, It would rather surf the internet, it would rather play a game, it would rather write or do some other work, it would rather go for a walk or do some other exercise, it would rather do everything thing else except pray! Therefore through the power of the Holy Spirit we must be willing to say no to the flesh and follow the desire of the spirit instead. We also have an enemy who would do everything he can to hinder us from praying, for example by making us feel very tired during our prayer time, or causing our thoughts to wander.
If every believer would begin their day by taking at least an hour and earnestly and sincerely use the model of the Lords prayer they would experience victory in their Christian life and revival in their churches.
We of course must not limit our prayer time to only one hour. Many will want to pray much longer than that or perhaps even less. We read how Daniel faithfully prayed three times in a day:
“When Daniel knew that the document had been signed, he went to his house where he had windows in his upper chamber open toward Jerusalem. He got down on his knees three times a day and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as he had done previously”(Daniel 6:10).
2. Praying early in the morning:
Jesus also rose early in the morning to be alone with His Father. For example we read in Mark 1:35:
“ Before daybreak the next morning, Jesus got up and went out to an isolated place to pray.
Therfore if possible we also, like Jesus, should withdraw to a lonely or quiet place where we will not be interrupted or disturbed. If this is not possible we should try and raise earlier so that we would not be interrupted by telephone calls or by the crying of our children, etc. Some people may find other times of the day to be more convenient. For example mothers who have children going to school may find it a convenient time to pray when their children are in school.
The Psalmist David said:
“My voice You shall hear in the morning, O Lord; In the morning I will direct it to You, And I will look up.” (Psalm 5:4)
“But to You I have cried out, O LORD, And in the morning my prayer comes before You.” (Psalms 88:13 NKJV
3. Praying in the evening:
David also prayed in the evening. He said in Psalms 141:2:
“Let my prayer be set before You as incense, The lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.”
In Exodus 30 we read how incense was burned regularly before The Lord morning and night:
“Aaron shall burn on it sweet incense every morning; when he tends the lamps, he shall burn incense on it. And when Aaron lights the lamps at twilight, he shall burn incense on it, a perpetual incense before the LORD throughout your generations. (Exodus 30:7-8″
4. Praying at all times:
The Apostle Paul exhorts us in 1Thess. 5:17 to always be in an attitude of prayer, “ pray without ceasing.” We should not grow weary in our praying and when we do not feel like praying that is the time when we should pray most!
Although we may have our regular incense was a symbol of the prayers and intercession of the people going up to God as a sweet fragrance.times of prayer we still can pray when we are going about our different duties.
Although Jesus saw the great need of withdrawing to be alone, there is no doubt that He was in communion with His Father at all times and through all mundane activity. He said in Luke 18:1:
Then He spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray and not lose heart, (Luke 18:1)
3: All three members of the Trinity are involved in our prayer life:
It is important to know that all three members of the Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit are involved in our prayer life. Although Jesus taught us to address our prayers to the Father, In Ephesians 2:18 we see that both Jesus and the Holy Spirit are involved in our approach and prayer life with the Father:
“For through him (Jesus) we both (both Jew and Gentile) have access to the Father by one Spirit.”
a. Jesus’ role in our prayer life:
We are invited to come to the Father in and through the Name of Jesus. We see this is repeated five times in the Gospel of John-John 14:13-14, John 15:16, John 16:23, John16:24, John 16:26. To pray in Jesus Name means that we are able to come to the Father not in our own righteousness but through the righteousness of Jesus and therefore we are able to come in His presence with boldness and without fear, without shame, and without guilt. To pray in Jesus Name is also to be wholly identified with God’s will and purpose for that which we are praying for. It is acting as the substitute and representative of Jesus Christ in making our petitions known to the Father. Jesus gives us the legal right to use His Name or the power of attorney. The definition of the power of attorney is, the
the authority to act for another person in specified or all legal or financial matters.
When we pray in Jesus Name, it is as though Jesus Himself were doing the praying. He takes our place before the Father while we do His will here on Earth. Our prayer passes out of our hands and into the hands of Jesus and we know that God always hears the prayers of Jesus (John 11:41).
All that Jesus is is embodied in His Name. Therefore when we pray in Jesus Name all His power and all His life stands behind His Name. This means that all the power of Heaven stands behind the wonderful Name of Jesus. We read in Col1:19: “For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell,” We also read in Phil.2:9-10, “Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names,
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,”
We see the great elevation, exaltation, majesty and authority and power in the Name of Jesus in the following verses:
“In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven. So he became as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs.”
Hebrews 1:1-4 NIV
In John 16:23 we read that Jesus is exhorting His disciples that after Pentecost they can bring their requests directly to the Father in His Name-
“In that day you will no longer ask me anything. I tell you the truth, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my Name.”
We have a four fold right to use that Name:
1. We are born into the family of God, it is our birth right.
2. We are baptized into the Name when we are baptized into the Name we are baptized into Christ Himself.
3. That Name was conferred on us by Jesus who gave us the right to use His Name by giving to us the power of attorney.
4. We are commissioned as ambassadors to go and herald this name among the nations
Acts 8: 12 : and the Name of Jesus Christ
Acts 3:6-8, Acts 4:7-10a
b. The Holy Spirit’s role in our prayer life:
The Holy Spirit also helps us to pray. He reveals to us what is the will of the Father and what is the burden of the Father’s heart. He gives us anointing and power and energizes our prayers, He gives us a prayer language so that we can praise God and pray and intercede by praying with other tongues. We see this in the following scriptures:
“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. (groans that our own human words cannot express).- Romans 8:26).
“ What am I to do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will pray with my mind also; I will sing praise with my spirit, but I will sing with my mind also.” (1Cor. 14:15).
The Holy Spirit also convicts us of any unconfessed sin that may be in our life:
“And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment-John 16:8).
If unconfessed sin is there then it is important for us to immediately bring it to the light (that means that we do not pretend that it is not there and try to hide it but name the sin and forsake it) and then bring it to the blood of Jesus for cleansing and forgiveness. God’s Word says in Psalms 66:18:
“If I had cherished sin in my heart the Lord would not have listened,”
God’s Word also says in 1John 1:7-8:
“ But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
The work of the Holy Spirit is to usher us into the presence of the Father where the Father is waiting with His arms of love wide open to receive us and to welcome us with joy into His presence. The Holy Spirit brings the presence of the Father and the Son into our hearts and brings us into a love relationship with them. Jesus teaches us this in the following verses:
“I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.
In that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you.
Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. (John 14:18, 20, 23 ESV)
When Jesus said, “I will come to you”, “we will come to Him” it plainly means that it is through the power of the Holy Spirit He and the Father comes to us.
The work that the Holy Spirit has in our praying is very important, therefore we must not ignore Him! We need to acknowledge Him and welcome Him in our prayer time . We read in Jude 20,
“Building yourselves up on your most holy faith praying in the Holy Spirit.”
and in Eph. 6:18, “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Holy Spirit.” In John 14:16 Jesus calls the Holy Spirit our “Helper.”: And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Comforter (Counselor, Helper, Intercessor, Advocate, Strengthener, and Standby), that He may remain with you forever– (John 14:16 AMP)
The Holy Spirit is not going to do your praying for you but He is there to help you.
5. The Great Importance and Privilege of Prayer:
The person or assembly of people who know how to pray can change the course of history, can bring down leaders and kingdoms and can change and transform the community, the city, or the nation that they are living in! Their prayers like intercontinental missiles can reach even beyond their own nation and can affect the nations of the world.
6. The Extent and Conditions of Prayer:
The following three verses bring out the fantastic and unlimited extent of the area our prayer reaches as well as the conditions that are necessary in order to get our prayers answered:
(a)Matt. 21:22: “And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.” The scope here is, “whatever you ask.” The condition is, “if you have faith.”
(b)John 15:7: “ If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.” The scope in this verse is, “ask whatever you wish.” The condition is, “If you abide in me, and my words abide in you.” This means a constant fellowship and communion with Our Lord as well as diligently meditating in His Word, thus making our prayers harmonize according to God’s Word.
(c)1John 5:14: “ And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us.” The scope here is, “If we ask anything.” The condition is, “that we ask according to His will.”
7. The model prayer that Jesus taught us to pray is divided up into the following nine different catagories:
a.First, “Our Father in Heaven”:
This opening description indicates to us what God is like. He is personal, He is intimate, He is our Father and His throne is in Heaven. In the Old Testament Father is mentioned only about fourteen times. We never find one of the O.T. saints personally address God directly as their Father or personally appropriate the Father by stating, “I am your son” or “I am your daughter”. Knowing and worshipping the Father is only possible to those to whom the Spirit of the Son is given- to those who are born again and adopted into the family of God through Jesus Christ. This is the new and living way mentioned in Heb. 10:20. It is a new way because the Old Testament saints never experienced it, it is a living way because we have Jesus Christ, God’s Son and the Holy Spirit living within us and revealing the Father to us. ““All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.”
Matthew 11:27 NIV
Only the Son can reveal the Father to us!
Derek Prince said that “In His high priestly prayer in John chapter 17, Jesus said to the Father, “I have manifested Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the world.” The Jewish people had known the name Jehovah (or Yahweh) for fourteen centuries. The name which Jesus now manifested to them occurred six times in His prayer. It was “Father.”
In the New Testament God is called Father two hundred and seventy-five times, one hundred and forty times in the Gospel of John alone. In verse one of the Gospel of John we read that “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God.” In this verse we see that the Divine Word, the eternal Son of God was with the Father before creation ever took place. Jesus enjoyed intimate fellowship with the Father from all eternity. In John 1:18 we read, “No man hath seen God but the only begotten Son who is in the bosom of the Father He hath declared Him.” The Amplified Bible gives an alternative reading for “the bosom of the Father”- “Intimate presence of the Father”. The expression is also used in John 13:23Where we read: “Now there was leaning on Jesus’ bosom one of His disciples, whom Jesus loved.” This indicates that the disciple leaning on Jesus’ bosom was enjoying intimate companionship and fellowship with Him. Jesus was not the Father but He was in the bosom of the Father and enjoying close fellowship with Him.
When Jesus came to Earth His main purpose was to redeem a lost humanity and bring them also into an intimate relationship with the Father. We see from verses of scripture like 1Peter 3:18 and John 14:6 that Jesus is the way but the Father is the destination.
In Mark 14:36 Jesus said, “Abba Father,”… Abba is an Aramaic word which was the language spoken by the Jews during Jesus time. It is a small child’s way of saying “Daddy”. Mark uses this intimate expression instead of using the Greek word, “Pater” for Father which is far less personal. The Jews of Jesus day would never have dreamed of addressing God in such an familiar way and were astounded when Jesus made such a claim of intimacy. In Romans 8:15 we read the following fantastic words showing that the same intimacy Jesus enjoyed with His Father, we also can enjoy .
“For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by Him we cry “Abba, Father.”
How marvelous to think that God is our Father and that we are His children, all because of what Jesus did for us when He suffered and died for us on cruel Calvary in order to reconcile us to God! As we begin this prayer let us thank God for His wonderful love and grace in sending us His only begotten Son making it possible for us to be called the children of God thereby making it possible for us to call Him, “Our Father!”
2.Hallowed be thy Name:
God’s Name is a reflection of who He is, of His character. Therefore when we pray this prayer we pray that He may be treated as holy. This means that we approach God with reverence. This expression also leads us to thank Him, to praise Him, to admire, adore and to worship Him, He who alone is holy.
In Psalm 95:2, Psalm 100:4 and Psalm 95:6 we have God’s order as to how we come into God’s presence and therefore it is very important that we follow this order. The order is first thanksgiving, then praise, then worship.
(a)First of all we are to come into His presence with thanksgiving:
“Let us enter His gates with thanksgiving.” (Psalm 100:4) Here we are to thank our Wonderful Father for all His wonderful provision and goodness, for example we thank Him for food, shelter, health, clothing, family, friends and church, for His precious Word and promises, for salvation, for sending us Jesus, for the Holy Spirit, for the precious blood of Jesus, etc.
We read also in Psalm 50:23 that our sacrifice of thanksgiving honors God and prepares the way for God to answer our prayers:
Anyone who sacrifices thank offerings to me honors me. He makes it possible for me to show him that I am the God who saves.” (Psalm 50:23 NIRV)
b.We then are to enter His courts with praise:
“go into His courts with praise” (Psalms 100:4). Here, we praise the Lord for who He is. For example we praise Him for His attributes that include His great love and compassion, His omnipotence and power divine, for His excellent greatness, for His great wisdom, for His justice, for His great mercy, for His faithfulness, for His truthfulness, His unchangeableness and His longsuffering, etc.
c.From praise we go unto worship:
Worship is the highest activity of the human soul and the greatest of all ministries. It results when we go beyond the gates of the tabernacle where we give thanks and beyond the court where we give praise and where we enter into the holy of holies into the immediate presence of God. The only way we can do so is through the precious blood of Jesus-“Having therefore boldness, brethren, to enter into the Holiest by the blood of Jesus,” (Heb:10:19).
When we worship God we think of His holiness. We read in Isaiah 6:1-3 Where Isaiah the prophet received a vision of the Holy of Holies in Heaven: “ In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and His train filled the temple. Above it stood the seraphims; each one had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew.And one cried unto another and said, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory.”
In the above verse we see the seraphims (The angelic order that are in the presence of God and perhaps the most exalted of all angels) are before the throne of God and extending Him worship and we see that they are focusing on His holiness!
We read further in the following verses: ” Come let us bow down in worship let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.” (Psalm 95;6,) “Let us worship the Lord in the splendor of His holiness.”(Psalms 96:9).”Let all the Earth fear the Lord, let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him! For he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood forth.” (Psalm 33:8-9).
Here we are taught to worship by bowing down in complete humility, respect and reverence for God acknowledging that He is our Creator and that we are His creatures and the sheep of His pasture and that without Him we are nothing and can do nothing, then worshipping Him in deep awe and adoration for His holiness.
In his Hebrew-Chaldee lexicon Gesenius says that a prominent Hebrew word for worship is “Shachah”. He goes on to say that this means to bow oneself down (Is. 51:23), to sink down, to prostrate oneself before anyone out of honor (Genesis 24:28).
In their Greek-English lexicon, Bauer, Arndt, Gingrich and Danker say that the predominant word in Greek for worship is “proskuneo”. They go on to say that In the Greek language as it is also in the Hebrew, this predominant word for worship is used to designate the custom of prostrating oneself before a person and kissing his feet or the hem of his garment for the purpose of showing reverence and respect to the one you are doing this to.
In Revelation 4:6-9 we see God being worshipped day and night by the four living creatures and by the twenty-four elders. The four living creatures kept on saying, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty…” In verse 9 we see that when the four living creatures gave thanks and glory and honor to God the twenty-four elders fall on their face before God in worship. This is also a good posture for us to come into also when we worship God.
In Romans 12:1 we read: “ I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
As we contemplate the Majestic greatness and holiness of God let His Name be hallowed in our lives and let us bow down and also prostrate ourselves before Him in deep awe and reverence surrendering all that we have and all that we are to Him by presenting our bodies to Him as a living sacrifice. Then with our lips express our love and adoration to Him for who He is. Let us worship God with true motives, not for what we can get from Him, for e.g. -“If we worship Him He will bless us, or He will heal us, or He will anoint us, etc.,” but true worship is giving and expecting nothing in return! Our main purpose therefore in worshipping Him is because He is worthy. We see this recorded in Rev. 4:11, Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.”
In John 4:23-24 we read this profound teaching that Jesus is giving on worship, “ A time will come, however, indeed it is already here, when the true (genuine) worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth (reality); for the Father is seeking just such people as these as His worshipers.
God is a Spirit (a spiritual Being) and those who worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth (reality). (John 4:23-24, Ampl. Version)
From the above two verses we see that Almighty God, the creator of the Heavens and Earth is seeking worshippers. He does not want one to be left out. We truly worship Him when we worship Him not just with lip service or superfically but from the depth of our spirit, as the Blessed Holy Spirit empowers and energizes us, and Who ushers us before the throne of our Holy God. It is then that we sense God’s wonderful glory and presence and our hearts are filled with deep respect and reverence for Him!
3.Thy Kingdom Come:
(a) What is God’s Kingdom?
It is God’s government, It is the supreme reign and rule of God in your life. To pray, “Thy kingdom come,” means to surrender our life totally to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. It means to align ourselves with the purposes of God and to do what God wants us to do in establishing His government in the hearts of a lost and dying humanity and what He would have us do in meeting their needs.
In Luke 17:20-21 we read,
“Asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, He (Jesus)replied by saying, The kingdom of God does not come with signs to be observed or with visible display, Nor will people say, Look! Here [it is]! or, See, [it is] there! For behold, the kingdom of God is within you [in your hearts] and among you [surrounding you] (Amplified Bible).
To have the kingdom of God within us is to dethrone self and every other idol in our lives, making Jesus the supreme king of our lives and being filled and controlled by the Holy Spirit.
In Romans 14:17 God’s Word says, “For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.
From the above verse we see that to have the kingdom of God within us is to live righteous lives and then this will produce peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. Without righteousness true peace cannot come into society or into our lives. Jesus’ first message when He began preaching is found in Mark 1:15: “The time promised by God has come at last!” he announced. “The Kingdom of God is near! Repent of your sins and believe the Good News!”
The first thing we need to do in order to come into God’s kingdom therefore is to repent. Faith that does not lead to genuine repentance is not saving faith! If we continue to hang on to some known sin we have not truly repented. To repent means to have a change of mind and a complete turning around from a life of self centeredness, confessing and forsaking all sin and then inviting and allowing Christ to be the center and king of our lives. When we do this we experience what it means to be born again. Jesus said, “Except a man be born again He cannot see the kingdom of God.” When we are born again we are forgiven our sins, delivered out of the kingdom of darkness and the devil and brought into God’s kingdom. We read in Col 1:12-13:
“and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves,”
We also read about the total transformation that takes place in our lives when we are born again in Titus 3:4-5:
“But— When God our Savior revealed his kindness and love, he saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit.”
When we are born again our body becomes a temple for the Holy Spirit. In 1Cor.6:19 the Apostle Paul said:
Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself,
In Matt. 4:23 we read that “Jesus went… preaching the good news of the kingdom.”
What is the good news of the kingdom? It is that now that we are able to do what the law could not do that through the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit we are able to live holy lives that are pleasing to God.
The Holy Spirit also then becomes our guide as we each desperately need someone to guide us safely through the pitfalls of our earthly walk and to guide us into perfect obedience in following the Lord. We see this in the following verses:
So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves.
But when you are directed by the Spirit, you are not under obligation to the law of Moses. (Galatians 5:16, 18)
Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God’s grace. (Romans 6:14)
Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, you have no obligation to do what your sinful nature urges you to do. For if you live by its dictates, you will die. But if through the power of the Spirit you put to death the deeds of your sinful nature, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. (Romans 8:12-14)
(b) How can we pray effectively for God’s Kingdom to come:
In Matt, 12:26 we read that Jesus states that Satan also has a kingdom, “And if Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand?”
To pray for God’s kingdom to come is to defeat Satan’s kingdom and to take back from him what he has stolen and what is our rightful inheritance through Jesus Christ such as health, deliverance joy, prosperity and salvation. It will mean praying for revival in our individual lives and in our homes, marriage and family.
The Christian family and home is a wonderful place where God’s kingdom can be displayed. When a Christian family lives Godly lives in accordance to the rules of God’s kingdom, it can be a great blessing and example to friends, neighbors and relatives. We must pray therefore that the kingdom of God will come in our homes and amongst our families and relatives.
The local church, not a man made institution but a body of believers that have made Christ their King, is a very necessary place as to where the kingdom of God can be displayed. When the church is experiencing revival and living by kingdom rules it can be a great blessing to the community and an example of what the kingdom of God is like!
When we pray for God’s kingdom to come it will mean defeating the devil’s power over our community and the breaking down or demolishing his strongholds of sickness, oppression, defeat, drug addiction, alcoholism and immorality.
It will mean breaking curses that may be over us, over our family, and others in the mighty Name of Jesus, for we read in Gal. 3:13-14:
“But Christ has rescued us from the curse pronounced by the law. When he was hung on the cross, he took upon himself the curse for our wrongdoing. For it is written in the Scriptures, “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.” Through Christ Jesus, God has blessed the Gentiles with the same blessing he promised to Abraham, so that we who are believers might receive the promised Holy Spirit through faith.”
To be delivered from the curse of the law makes it possible for us to come into the blessing of Abraham which is health, prosperity, favor with God, victory and reproductiveness.
We must also pray for His kingdom to come into the schools in our community, the work places, our hospital, our municipality, our province, our country, God’s church in our nation and in the church throughout the world, the universities and colleges, and our government. It will mean praying for God’s kingdom to come in the lives of those we are witnessing to. It will mean praying for God’s kingdom to come into the dark places of the Earth, and the nations of the world.
In Matt. 12: 28, Jesus said, “But if I drive out demons by the Spirit of God then the kingdom of God has come upon you.”
He also said, verily I say unto you, whatsoever ye bind on earth shall be bound in heaven and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.(Matt.18:18)
We also read from the last commission Jesus gave His disciples:
“And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils.”(Mark16:17).
When Jesus was on Earth He was casting out the devils. One third of His ministry consisted in this. We learned from the above verse that Jesus said that when He cast out the demons the kingdom of God was coming upon the people. We learned from the great commission foound in Mark 16:17 that God wants us to continue the ministry of Jesus here on earth.
Jesus defeated the power of the devil by His death on Calvary-
“And having spoiled principalities and powers he made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it.” (Col.2:15).
God has placed in the hands of the church the power to enforce the victory that is ours that was won for us at Calvary. Satan and evil spirits have no longer any power over us, They have no longer any claim over us and they have no longer any place in our lives except for that which we give him. Jesus has given us mighty weapons for which we can use against the devil
-“For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds.”(llCor.10:4).
We also have that wonderful verse in Matt. 12:28-29 where Jesus demonstrates God’s Kingdom in casting out demons:
But if it is by the Spirit of God that I drive out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. “Or again, how can anyone enter a strong man’s house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can plunder his house.”
Let us rise up in the power of the Holy Spirit with the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God and in the mighty Name of Jesus cast down the strongholds of the enemy in the lives of those who are bound and advance God’s kingdom as we wait upon God in prayer.
(c)God’s final and future purpose regarding His Kingdom:
God’s final purpose regarding His kingdom is the establishment of His visible kingdom on Earth with a visible King, our precious Lord Jesus Christ. This will come at the end of the age when Christ returns, His dominion will be established over the whole earth and every one of His enemies defeated! We read in 1Cor. 15:24-25, “Then comes the end, when He (Jesus) delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet.”
We read in Psalms 145:13 that God’s kingdom is eternal, “Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures throughout all generations.”(Psalms 145:13)
Jesus also spoke of God’s eternal kingdom,“ In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God but you yourselves cast out. And people will come from east and west, and from north and south, and recline at table in the kingdom of God.” (Luke 13:28-29)
In the book of Revelation we read of what will happen at the end of this age:
Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever.” (Revelation 11:15 ESV)
We know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one. (1 John 5:19 ESV)
Who gave (yielded) Himself up [to atone] for our sins [and to save and sanctify us], in order to rescue and deliver us from this present wicked age and world order, in accordance with the will and purpose and plan of our God and Father– (Galatians 1:4 AMP)
4. Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven:
Now that you have asked the Father to bring His kingdom into your life by totally surrendering your life to Him you are now prepared to do His will. Jesus came to do the Father’s will and we are to follow in His footsteps. He said, “My meat is to do the will of him that sent me and to finish his work.” (John 4:34). We see this also in John 6:38, “For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.” Let us determine daily to do the will of God and pray that just as His will is done in Heaven it will also be done in and through our lives.
In finding God’s will for us we must first ask God by His Holy Spirit to search our hearts to see if there is any unconfessed sin that may be there. God’s Word clearly teaches us that if there is any sin in our hearts God will not hear our prayer, ”If I had cherished iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not have listened.” (Psalms 66:18). Therefore it is necessary to confess and repent of every unconfessed sin exposing it to the light by naming it specifically and then to the blood of Jesus for cleansing.
In determining God’s will many voices will speak to us and therefore we can be led astray. Let us then always remember the admonition found in Proverbs 3:5-6,
“Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not unto thine own
understanding in all thy ways acknowledge Him and He will direct thy paths.”
The voice of self and our own imaginations will speak loudly therefore we can only determine God’s will when we are willing to die to our own will and to our own imaginations. Here we again in faith bring our lives to the cross and ask Jesus to nail us there so that we no longer have any will of our own. We then in faith can proclaim with the Apostle Paul, “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” (Gal.2:20). We can then ask the Lord to silence the voice of our own imaginations and then in faith thank Him for doing so.
The voice of the enemy of our soul will also speak loudly in order to deceive us, therefore it is important to resist him in the mighty Name of Jesus. We read in James 4:7, “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” After resisting the devil and deceiving spirits by proclaiming the above verse and then with authority command the devil to flee in Jesus Name! We then thank and praise the Lord for fulfilling His Word.
We then wait silently with expectancy believing that God will honor His Word and give us the direction we need. God’s promise to us is, “ My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.” (John 10:27).
God’s will usually come very clear to us when we are in His presence and worshipping and praising Him. We see this in Psalm 95:6-7. Immediately after exhorting the people to bow down and worship the Psamist exhorts them to hear God’s voice:
“Oh come, let us worship and bow down;
let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker!
For he is our God,
and we are the people of his pasture,
and the sheep of his hand.
Today, if you hear his voice!”
Also there may be times that God’s answer may not come immediately. It maybe necessary then that we must fast and pray and humble ourselves before God in order to determine God’s will especially regarding major decisions such as marriage, our job position, our future ministry, where he wants us to minister, etc. We see how Daniel fasted and prayed In order to find out God’s will, this is found in Daniel ch.9:3, “Then I turned my face to the Lord God, seeking him by prayer and pleas for mercy with fasting and sackcloth and ashes.” We have the answer to Daniel’s prayer being given to him in Daniel 9:20-22, “While I was speaking and praying, confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my plea before the Lord my God for the holy hill of my God, while I was speaking in prayer, the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the first, came to me in swift flight at the time of the evening sacrifice. He made me understand, speaking with me and saying, “O Daniel, I have now come out to give you insight and understanding.”
We see this also in the life of the early church found in Acts 13:1-2 where the early church was no doubt seeking God for direction,
“Now there were in the church at Antioch prophets and teachers, Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen a lifelong friend of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.”
We must also bear in mind that God will not give us new direction unless we are willing to obey the previous direction that He has given us. He will not show us our second step unless we are willing to obey our first step.
God can also speak to us through dreams and visions. We should seek for confirmation when we receive them. He can also speak through Godly friends or leaders but here again we should seek for confirmation and the direction given to us should agree with what God is already showing us. God can speak to us in the ways mentioned above and also in other ways, but whatever way He speaks the important thing is to have His peace in the direction He is showing us. We read this in Col. 3:15, “15 And let the peace (soul harmony which comes) from Christ rule (act as umpire continually) in your hearts [deciding and settling with finality all questions that arise in your minds, in that peaceful state] to which as [members of Christ’s] one body you were also called [to live]. And be thankful (appreciative), [giving praise to God always]. (Amp. Bible). Therefore we should be very careful not to make a decision if there is any turmoil or unrest in our hearts regarding it.
5. Give us this day our daily bread:
As we daily consecrate our lives into the hands of our loving Father we have confidence that He will supply our every need. Jesus would not have taught us to pray this prayer if He knew it would not be answered! In James 4:2 we read, “…You do not have, because you do not ask.”
What is it that we need? Do we have spiritual needs, emotional needs or physical needs. If the request is according to God’s will then let us with boldness make our petitions known and then thank Him in faith for the answers. We could pray this prayer not only for ourselves but also for our family members, relatives, for our brothers and sisters in our local church and the church throughout the world especially those who are prison for their faith, for those who are suffering persecution and for those who have physical or spiritual needs. We may pray also for others who we know are suffering and have needs , for example the many refugees and for those who are in war zones. For the homeless, for the orphans, for the widows (especially for those who are in developing nations), for the sick and wounded and those who are suffering from natural disasters for example tornadoes, floods or earthquakes, for those who are oppressed for those who are in the dark places of the earth who have never heard the Gospel, for those who are in mental hospitals and for those who are bound by drugs and alcohol.
6.Forgive us our debts as we also have forgiven our debtors.
There is not one of us who cannot say that we have not sinned, there fore it is very important for each one of us to continually walk in the light. We read in 1John 1:7-9:
“ But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
To walk in the light is not to hide our sins or make excuses for them but rather expose them by confessing them and then forsaking them.
God’s Word declares, “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” (Eph.4:32). Each one of us is in need of forgiveness and God, through the blood of Jesus, has forgiven us of a great debt. Therefore let us be quick to forgive those who have offended us in any way. If we have hurt or offended somebody in any way we should immediately ask for forgiveness, even if the other person also was wrong, for example if the other person was 95 percent wrong and we were only 5 percent wrong we should still humble ourselves and ask for forgiveness for the 5 percent that we are guilty of. If we wait for an hour then our hearts are hard, if we wait for a day then our hearts are very hard. God’s Word exhorts us in Eph. 4:26: “ And “don’t sin by letting anger control you.” Don’t let the sun go down while you are still angry,” In other words do not let a day pass before you become reconciled with your fellow man!
If we will not forgive others then God will not forgive us our sins. We read in Mark 11:25-26, “ But when you are praying, first forgive anyone you are holding a grudge against, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your sins, too.”
Forgiveness is first and foremost not an emotion but an act of will. We choose to forgive others, we choose to love, we choose to forget. By forgiving others we ourselves are made free from the prison house of bitterness and resentment. Forgiving the person who has wronged us is giving him or her a gift they do not deserve, the gift of forgiveness. It is dropping all resentment and bitterness. As we pray for and bless our enemies and those who have hurt us, choosing to show them kindness and speak well of them, God will give us His love in our hearts for them.
We must also be willing to forgive ourselves! When we have done foolish things that have hurt others and grieved the Holy Spirit we can become discouraged and angry with ourselves and perhaps we may find it difficult to forgive ourselves. God’s Word teaches us in Matt. 22:38-39 that we are also to love ourselves, “This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” If we are to love ourselves we are also to forgive ourselves.
If our child does wrong and is disobedient we will not cast the child out of our home but instead we will forgive our child and do everything we can to restore the child back into fellowship. This is also true with God our Father, when we sin and commit some foolish act He longs to forgive us and to restore us back into fellowship with Himself. We see this in God’s great longsuffering and love for faithless Israel who had deeply rebelled against Him. We find this recorded in Jeremiah 3:12-14, “ Go, and proclaim these words toward the north, and say,
“‘Return, faithless Israel,
declares the Lord.
I will not look on you in anger,
for I am merciful,
declares the Lord;
I will not be angry forever.
13 Only acknowledge your guilt,
that you rebelled against the Lord your God
and scattered your favors among foreigners under every green tree,
and that you have not obeyed my voice,
declares the Lord.
14 Return, O faithless children,
declares the Lord;
for I am your master;…
Here also we could ask God to forgive our families, naming each member before God! We read in Job 1:5 that this was the practice of godly Job in the Old Testament who as priest for his family offered a burnt offering for each of his children.
“So it was, when the days of feasting had run their course, that Job would send and sanctify them, and he would rise early in the morning and offer burnt offerings according tothe number of them all. For Job said, “It may be that my sons have sinned and cursed[a] God in their hearts.” Thus Job did regularly.”
We who are under the New Testament do not have to offer regular offerings as Job did for Jesus was and is our sacrifice but we can intercede before God that God would forgive our children because of Jesus sacrifice on the cross who became the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world.
7. And lead us not into Temptation:
We must understand that God does not tempt any man to sin. We read in James 1:13-15,
“And remember, when you are being tempted, do not say, “God is tempting me.” God is never tempted to do wrong, and he never tempts anyone else. Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away. These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death.”
We will all be tempted, even Jesus was tempted but he did not yield to the temptation. For example you cannot stop the birds from flying over your head (you cannot stop temptation to sin from coming your way) but you can stop them from building a nest in your hair (you do not have to yield to the temptation). We see from Our Lord’s prayer, that Jesus did not teach us to pray, “lead us from temptation” but He taught us to pray, “lead us not into temptation”. Therefore from this prayer, Jesus is showing us that we need God’s help so that we would be delivered from yielding to temptation.
God has shown us in His Word that there are at least two ways we can be hindered from falling into temptation.
First we can be hindered from falling into temptation by walking in or having the fear of the Lord. What does it mean to have the “fear of the Lord”. The Bible speaks of the fear of the Lord as being our treasure:
“In that day he will be your sure foundation, providing a rich store of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge. The fear of the LORD will be your treasure.” (Isaiah 33:6)
Therefore the fear of the Lord is something very important to possess. What does it mean to have the “fear of the Lord”.
(a)The fear of the Lord is hatred of evil:
The fear of the Lord is hatred of evil. Pride and arrogance and the way of evil and perverted speech I hate. (Proverbs8:13)
(b)The Fear of the Lord is a wise Choice:
“Then they will call upon me, but I will not answer; they will seek me diligently but will not find me. Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the Lord,” (Proverbs 1:28, 29)
(c)The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;…” (Prov. 111:10).
(d)The fear of the Lord does not come to the insincere or half-hearted:
My child, listen to what I say,
and treasure my commands.
2 Tune your ears to wisdom,
and concentrate on understanding.
3 Cry out for insight,
and ask for understanding.
4 Search for them as you would for silver;
seek them like hidden treasures.
5 Then you will understand what it means to fear the Lord,
and you will gain knowledge of God.(Prov. 2:1-5)
Let us be wise and choose to walk daily in the “fear of The Lord” earnestly seeking to know and please God, hating evil and cultivating deep, reverential respect for The Lord! Thus we will be led out of temptation!
As we pray this prayer let us pray earnestly that God would put His fear upon our lives and the lives of our family!
2. Secondly to be kept out of falling into temptation we should daily by faith put on the whole armor of God. We read about this in Eph. 6:11-18:
“ Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.
Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared. In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.”
The Apostle Paul teaches us here, who our enemy is, that he, the devil is very powerful, that he commands a force of rebellious spirits. His kingdom is very well organized therefore we must not under estimate him! Therefore it is very important that we, by faith, put on the whole armor of God piece by piece so that we might be protected against all his tactics and endeavors to get us to sin and fall into defeat.
We have the armor of God described to us in Eph. 6:11-18:
(a) The first piece of armor that we put on is the belt of truth.
Here we ask God to cleanse our hearts from all religious hypocrisy and from all misappropriation of the truth and that we determine in our hearts to speak the complete truth without any exaggeration. We read in Psalm 24:3-4, “Who may climb the mountain of the Lord?
Who may stand in his holy place?
Only those whose hands and hearts are pure,
who do not worship idols
and never tell lies.”
(b) The second piece of armor is the breast plate of righteousness.
In 1Thess. 5:8 we read that this consists of faith and love, “But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation.” Our faith is rooted in the promises of God and the kind of love God wants us to have is “agape” which is willing the highest good for the object of our love and expecting nothing in return. Here we can also thank God in faith for clothing us with the garments of salvation and for covering us with the robe of righteousness and then appropriating personally this wonderful truth! We discover this truth in Isaiah 61:10: “I will greatly rejoice in the Lord,
My soul shall be joyful in my God;
For He has clothed me with the garments of salvation,
He has covered me with the robe of righteousness,
As a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments,
And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.”
Thank God, since we are clothed with the garments of salvation and completely covered with the robe of His righteousness the enemy cannot touch us with condemnation, guilt, shame or false accusations. We must always keep in mind that this righteousness does not come by works or by observing religious laws but through faith. Paul writes about this kind of righteousness in Philippians 3:9:
“and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith;”
(c) Thirdly we put on the shoes of the preparation of the gospel of peace!
When we have God’s peace in our hearts we are then enabled to be messengers of peace to troubled hearts and to those that are oppressed. We should always be prepared to share this peace, perhaps not even by saying anything but just by our presence, in the market place in the streets in our neighborhood, at our work place and in our homes!
(d) The shield of Faith is the fourth item we put on.
This shield covers every area of our lives and therefore it is very important to be behind its protection and to lay everything God has committed to us behind its protection. Therefore When we put on this piece by faith we can ask the Lord to place our personal lives, every member of our families, all our property, our work place, all our fellow employees, all our brothers and sisters in Christ and especially those whom we know who are working in hard and dangerous places behind the shield of faith.
(e) The fifth piece of armor that we put on is the helmet of salvation.
With this piece of armor we protect our minds. The battle field where the enemy of our soul attacks is our mind and and our thought life. He does this through lies and deception. The Bible tell us in Eph. 4:27 that we are not to give the devil any room:
“Leave no [such] room or foothold for the devil [give no opportunity to him).
The devil will tempt us to have negative thoughts, unforgiving thoughts, hateful thoughts, unclean thoughts. He will also attack us with doubt, discouragement, mistrust, self pity, unworthiness and inferiority. When we yield to these temptations we allow him a place in our lives therefore the helmet is a very important piece of armor. In 2Cor. 10:5, Paul speaks about bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Jesus Christ:
“casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,”
The Bible clarifys this piece of armor more to us in 1Thess. 5:8: “But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation.” The helmet of protection that that we put on is hope. Having hope therefore is very important to defend our minds against the devil’s attack. The opposite of hope is pessimisism or in other words always being negative and taking a gloomy view of our particular situation instead of being optimistic and being cheerful, thinking the best over our situation.Therefore always being optimistic is very important! The Bible speaks of hope in Heb. 6:19 as an anchor of the soul. It keeps us anchored secure and stable. In Romans 8:28 we read these very important words,
“ And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”
Every situation that God allows us to go through, even though difficult, and seemingly unbearable is a reason to be optimistic for all things are working together for good, therefore when we go through them we should be thankful and count it all joy according to the two following verses of scripture:
“give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” (1Thess. 5:18)
“Count it all joy, my brothers,when you meet trials of various kinds,” (James 1:2)
A good portion of scripture to remember to proclaim and then to thank and praise the Lord for when we are tempted to be negative and pessimistic is found in Phillipians 4:6-8:
“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.”
(f) The sixth piece of armor that we take is the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God:
With this piece of armor we attack the enemy of our soul by proclaiming God’s Word to each area where Satan is opposing us. The next step after proclaiming God’s Word is, in faith, thanking the Lord for the answer even though we may not yet see it or posess it in a tangible way. This then leads to the third step and that is to give God the sacrifice of praise for He alone is worthy of all the praise and glory!
God’s Word is very important and very powerful. We read in Heb. 4:12:
“ For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires.
We also read in Matt. 4:3-4 that Jesus overcame the devil’s temptations by proclaiming the Word of God:
“During that time the devil came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become loaves of bread.”
But Jesus told him, “No! The Scriptures say,
‘People do not live by bread alone,
but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’
Let us use God’s Word also in overcoming temptations and breaking strongholds in our lives and in the lives of others and in the lives of those who are especially near to us. Remember that God’s Word only becomes a sword when we speak it forth in faith through our mouth and in the power of the Holy Spirit! The enemy of our soul will not be defeated by just having a knowledge of God’s Word or even by memorizing God’s Word, it must be proclaimed and spoken with authority through our mouth and then we can command the devil to go in the mighty Name of Jesus. After that in faith we can thank and praise the Lord for the victory!
(g) The seventh and final piece of armor is “all prayer”.
This is a very powerful weapon and has no limitations or boundaries. With this weapon we can reach nations, tribes and individuals thousands of miles away. Through prayer corrupt government can be thrown down and righteous government and leaders raised up. Through the prayer of faith sick bodies can be healed and demons can be cast out even if the sick are living thousands of miles away from the person who is praying! As we wait upon God the Holy Spirit can show us what to pray for and how to pray for the answer. When possible and to be even more effective fasting ought to be combined with prayer especially in difficult situations and when we have difficulty in getting our prayers answered. We read Jesus’s words in Matt. 17:21:
However this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.”
9. But deliver us from the evil one:
The last Thing we Pray For and also very Important is that the Lord would Keep us from Evil. Here we, in faith, ask the Lord to cover our lives and the lives of our loved ones with the precious blood of Jesus. In the ordinance of the Passover, each man (father) was to take a lamb for his family, one for each household (Exodus 12:3). We read further in Exodus 12:21-23:
“Then Moses called all the elders of Israel together and said to them, “Go, pick out a lamb or young goat for each of your families, and slaughter the Passover animal. Drain the blood into a basin. Then take a bundle of hyssop branches and dip it into the blood. Brush the hyssop across the top and sides of the doorframes of your houses. And no one may go out through the door until morning. For the Lord will pass through the land to strike down the Egyptians. But when he sees the blood on the top and sides of the doorframe, theLord will pass over your home. He will not permit his death angel to enter your house and strike you down.”
From the above account we see that the father took the lamb, killed it, and drained the blood into a basin. He then was to take a bundle of hyssop branches, dip it into the blood and transfer it to the door of the home. The lamb typified Jesus Christ as our Passover Lamb (1Cor.5:7) who was sacrificed for us and whose blood was poured out for the remission of our sins and to redeem us out of the hand of the devil. We also read in 1Pet. 18-19:
“knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conductreceived by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.”
We also read in Rev. 12:ll that the Blood of Jesus is a mighty weapon to be used against the devil:
“And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.”
From the above passage we see that the God’s people overcame the devil through three different weapons, the blood of the Lamb, by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death or in other words a life of total commitment to live for Jesus Christ regardless of what the cost may be.
In the Passover ceremony, that we read about in Exodus 12, the blood was of no use or value if it remained in the basin, it had to be applied and sprinkled on the door of the home. In the same way the blood of Jesus is of no value to us if we do not apply it in faith to our lives! How do we do this? We do it by the Word of our testimony! We read in Psalms 107:2 that it is important to confess what the Lord has done for us:
“Let the redeemed of the Lord say so,
Whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy,”
The Word of our testimony is when we testify or proclaim personally to what the Word of God states the blood of Jesus does for us. What does the Word of God say about what the blood of Jesus does for us?
Through the blood of Jesus, I am redeemed out of the hand of the devil (Ephesians 1:7), through the blood of Jesus, all my sins are forgiven (1John 1:9), through the blood of Jesus, I am continually being cleansed from all my sin (1John 1:7), through the blood of Jesus, I am justified (Romans 5:9), Through the blood of Jesus I am sanctified (Hebrews 13:12), through the blood of Jesus, I have boldness to enter into the presence of God (Hebrews 10:19). Therefore when we are tempted when we are accused of the devil for guilt, of shame or fear we can boldly proclaim with authority what the Word of God says the blood of Jesus does for us.
In Leviticus 8:23 we read how Moses took the blood of an innocent animal and applied it to the ear of Aaron, his thumb and his big toe. The blood of the innocent animal typified the blood of Jesus that would be poured out on Calvary. Applying the blood on the ear, on the thumb and on the big toe was showing that the blood was not just for inner cleansing of the heart from sin but it was for protection of our outer man as well. When the devil sees the blood of Jesus, that has been applied by faith on our hearts and bodies, he will not touch us. Just as the death angel passed by the homes of the Israelites when he saw the blood of the innocent lamb so will the enemy of our soul pass us by when he sees the blood of Jesus that has been applied to our hearts by faith. Just as the father of every household applied the blood on the door of his home on behalf of his family , so is it necessary that the head of every home should do this also in faith today on behalf of their family
In Psalm 51:7 we read of the Psalmist David pleading the blood:
“Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;
Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.”
This we ought to do when we pray this prayer, “but deliver us from evil”, to plead, in faith, the precious blood of Jesus over our lives and over our family, naming each one in God’s presence in order to protect each one in the family from all accidents, sickness and disease and every attack of the evil one.
We read of a wonderful example of why it is important to pray daily for God’s protection in the following true story:
“A God-fearing Armenian Christian was sending some merchandise to a distant city. There were no railroads in that part of the country, and as it was a valuable lot of goods the merchant himself accompanied the caravan. Such caravans usually camp at night, and this is an opportune time for the highwaymen, who make their living by attacking caravans, to steal unnoticed upon the campers. At the chosen time, under cover of the night, the Kurds drew near. All was strangely silent. There seemed to be no guards. But as they pressed closer, imagine their astonishment to find high walls where walls had never stood before. The next night they found the same impassable walls. On the third night they found the same walls, but there were breaches in them through which the robbers entered. The captain of the marauding band was so terrified by the mystery that he woke up the Armenian, asking what it meant. He told how his band had followed intent on robbing them; how they had found the high walls around the caravan on the first and second nights; but on this night they had been able to enter through breaches. “If you will tell us the secret of all this, we will not molest you,” said the captain. The merchant himself was puzzled. “My friends,” he said, “I have done nothing to have walls raised about us. All I do is pray every evening, committing myself and those with me to God. I fully trust in Him to keep me from all evil; but tonight, being very tired and sleepy, I made a rather halfhearted prayer. That must be why you were allowed to break through.” The Kurds were overcome by this testimony. Then and there they accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior. But the Armenian never forgot the breach in the wall of prayer…”- From Springs in the Valley
Let us not forget to daily pray for God’s protection over our lives and over the lives of our families
9. For thine is the Kingdom and the glory for ever and for ever.
We started with worship and praise and we end with it- Giving God all the glory for every thing for it is God who works in us both to will and do His good pleasure.” (Philippines: 2:13).
We then thank the Lord in faith and praise Him with all our hearts for hearing and answering our prayer, that is kingdom is coming, that is will is being done, that He is supplying our daily needs, that He has forgiven us, that He is leading us not into temptation, and that He is delivering us from evil!
I feel it would be appropriate to close this article on the Lord’s prayer with the last Psalm, Psalm 150:1-6:
Praise the Lord!
Praise God in His sanctuary;
Praise Him in His mighty firmament!
2 Praise Him for His mighty acts;
Praise Him according to His excellent greatness!
3 Praise Him with the sound of the trumpet;
Praise Him with the lute and harp!
4 Praise Him with the timbrel and dance;
Praise Him with stringed instruments and flutes!
5 Praise Him with loud cymbals;
Praise Him with clashing cymbals!
6 Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.
Praise the Lord!
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