How should I pray for myself if I am already complete in Christ?
The simple answer is this, your spirit is perfect and whole, but your body and soul need to experience the ongoing promises of God. Your salvation is secure, but the rest of your being needs renewal as you are continually conformed to the image of Christ. You experience that renewal the same way you were born again, by grace through faith. Everything the rest of your being needs to experience is also a gift from God. You can't earn it, suffer for it, or be good enough. You can only renew your mind and persuade your heart of the present reality that you are in Christ. As your mind and heart align with who God is in you and who you are in Him, it will shape your thoughts, desires, and choices, and your spiritual state will affect the rest of your being.
So you should still pray, but pray in such a way that you affirm your already completed spiritual identity. Remember that He has given you all things that pertain to life and godliness, and all his promises are yes and amen. We are not asking God to give us something we don't already have in Christ. Prayer should shift our hearts and eyes to see and experience what is already ours in Christ.
How should I pray for others?
When praying for others, you pray the same for them, that they would see who they are in Christ and what they have in Christ. One of the most effective things you can do in praying for someone else is to pray with your spirit for that person.
Concerning the enemy, if someone is oppressed, hindered, or believing a lie, pray in such a way that you reinforce their connection with God so that they would stand in their authority and display the strength and faith of Christ in them. The believer with a limiting belief or some kind of deception must resist the enemy by standing in the truth of their already accomplished victory in Christ. Still, even more so, they need to strengthen their hearts in what Christ has already accomplished.
The goal is not to chase away a demon; it is to strengthen the believer's heart/faith, so they don't allow the enemy's tactics to cause them to stumble.
Devils and demons aren't causing your hindrances, they're attracted to your hindrances. Those limitations and hindrances are in your heart, in your beliefs. Once you align those with God's word, the enemy has nothing else to reinforce in your life.
The most significant breakthroughs don't come from rebuking and binding spirits off your life. Instead, the most essential breakthroughs come when you know your power in Christ and are no longer susceptible to the lies or tactics of the enemy.
Truly, He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. And when you stand in the power/authority of the one who is in you, the enemy has nothing in you to exploit. The church needs to wake up to the reality of the New Covenant, in which the enemy is already defeated and stripped of authority.
If you have no weaknesses in any given area, the enemy has nothing to exploit. But unfortunately, too many people pray as if the demon is causing the hindrance when in reality, the demon is just an opportunist.
The solution is to strengthen the believer, and the enemy will have no ground to apply any sort of tactic.
The Apostle Paul's prayers are a good model for us. You never see him rebuking a devil, breaking a curse, cutting a soul tie, or pulling down strongholds over cities. Instead, we always see Paul affirming believers' connection with God through Christ. He prayed that our hearts, minds, and spiritual eyes would be opened to see what is already ours in Christ. Because he knew that when a believer understands the finished work of Jesus and operates from that identity/authority, the enemy has no effect, and we will accomplish the purposes of God.
If you'd like to dig a little deeper, read through all of Paul's prayers and pay attention to how he prays. I created a blog a while ago that lists all of Paul's prayers. I pray it's a blessing to you and helps you understand better how to pray as a New Covenant believer.
Click here -> https://www.clintbyars.com/blog/2019/5/6/complete-list-prayers-apostle-paul
Also, jump in on the discussion under a similar Facebook post.
Clint and Sara Byars
Forward Ministries
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