How Should You Pray Under the New Covenant?
I have this discussion alot, centered around this question, "how do I pray under the New Covenant." We must remember that in Christ we are complete, he has given us 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 be from the perspective to have our hearts and eyes enlightened to see and experience what is already ours in Christ.
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.
Spirits, Ghosts, and Messages from the Other Side
Do you believe in angels? Do you believe in demons? Do you believe in ghosts? Do you think they are active in the world today? Christians have the capacity to distinguish between spirits and discover the truth. Jesus promised His spirit would come to live inside us and testify of Him when we are born again. His spirit inside us helps us not to be led astray by lying and deceiving spirits. Join us today and learn how to keep your hope anchored in Jesus and not be led astray by messages from the other side.
“You know that you were Gentiles, carried away to these dumb idols, however you were led.”
Do you believe in angels? Do you believe in demons? Do you believe in ghosts? Do you think they are active in the world today?
In this message I tell a story about possibly hearing a message from my mom on the third anniversary of her passing. While we don’t understand everything there is to know about the “great cloud of witnesses,” we do know that we’re connected to the spiritual realm. I give my clear opinion about what may or may not have happened regarding a message from my mom from Heaven. I hope you watch the message before commenting.
People in our time are craving spiritual experiences. The pain of loss can make us vulnerable to deceiving spirits, but the Lord also always wants to encourage us. We must have our spiritual senses tuned to truth to discern what’s the truth in our spiritual experiences.
Christians have the capacity to distinguish between spirits and discover the truth. Jesus promised His spirit would come to live inside us and testify of Him when we are born again. His spirit inside us helps us not to be led astray by lying and deceiving spirits.
In this message I discuss how to keep your hope anchored in Jesus and not be led astray by messages from the other side.
Quantum Entanglement and the Power of Prayer
Quantum Mechanics has shown us that there seems to be a different set of laws of physics at the quantum level. At that level, matter appears to respond to human observation rather than continuing along a deterministic course. From this understanding, we can glean insight into the power of prayer and how our prayer is powerful. Like the Centurion soldier healed by Jesus sending the word, we are connected by an unseen field that can manifest the will of God through prayer.
“For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made”
You are quantum entangled with God.
I love the direction my mind goes when I think about a concept like this. I love geeking out on these kinds of sermons. I preach sermons like this because I want to de-mystify spiritual power and recapture hope in the power of prayer.
Quantum Mechanics has shown us that there seems to be a different set of laws of physics at the quantum level. At that level, matter appears to respond to human observation rather than continuing along a deterministic course.
From this understanding, we can glean insight into the gift of prayer and how our prayer is powerful. Like the Centurion soldier healed by Jesus sending the word, we are connected by an unseen field that can manifest the will of God through prayer.
I am not suggesting that the action of matter at the quantum level is spiritual power. It only helps us understand the unseen realm a bit more. I realize many strange ideas have been birthed from trying to manipulate matter due to knowledge of the spooky aspects of the quantum realm, I am not suggesting we try to manipulate the world through thought and intention. Instead, I am suggesting we use quantum-level action as a parable to understand more about the spiritual realm and the power in us.
I hope this series is helpful for you. Look for more messages on prayer from a non-mystical perspective.
If you like this sermon, here's an older series on the same topic: The Quantum Kingdom
Does Prayer Do Anything?
Have you ever felt like prayer doesn’t make much of a difference? Over the years people have confessed to me they don’t pray much. They don’t pray much because they feel like it doesn’t do much. People know they’re “supposed” to pray as Christians but often feel like it doesn’t change anything. Ever been there?
We pray and then carry on as if we don’t expect anything to change. That may sound a little harsh but if you’re honest with yourself, you know it’s true. You have probably felt this way at times. I want to give you some good news about prayer. Whether you understand it or not, something is happening when you pray. You might not see immediate results, you may never see results, but if you believe what you pray, something is definitely happening.
Have you ever felt like prayer doesn’t make much of a difference? Over the years people have confessed to me they don’t pray much. They don’t pray much because they feel like it doesn’t do much. People know they’re “supposed” to pray as Christians but often feel like it doesn’t change anything. Ever been there?
We pray and then carry on as if we don’t expect anything to change. That may sound a little harsh but if you’re honest with yourself, you know it’s true. You have probably felt this way at times. I want to give you some good news about prayer. Whether you understand it or not, something is happening when you pray. You might not see immediate results, you may never see results, but if you believe what you pray, something is definitely happening.
For more on New Covenant based prayer, click to listen to this free series.
TV Remote Control Illustration
Allow me to use your TV remote as an illustration for prayer. Your TV remote sends an infrared signal to your TV to change the channel or access the menu. You press a button on the remote and the TV responds. You don’t think about it, you don’t understand how that particular button is programmed to adjust the TV to that specific command, but you trust when you press those buttons the remote will do what it’s programmed to do.
Prayer is like a TV remote. You have the power of life and death in your tongue. The quantum field theory tells us that humans have an energetic effect on the material world. When you speak, when you pray, there is an energetic release from your mouth and your heart that go out to accomplish your intention.
When you pray the Word of God, you carry Heaven’s programming to affect whatever you’re praying over. But if your heart and mouth are not in agreement, the signal will not connect. If you want to put it on channel 2 but you press 3, you will not see the effect you want. But if you put the TV on the channel you desire, you will access what’s being sent to that channel from the broadcasting source.
Prayer is more of a command rather than a request. You’re not commanding God to do something, you’re commanding creation to respond to God’s will. God has revealed his will in Christ, it’s up to us to declare that will in the earth.
Finding The Right Channel
Have you ever looked for a specific show on TV? You know it’s on but you’re not sure which channel. Connecting with God’s promises is like that. God is constantly broadcasting his promises to us from Heaven just like a TV station is broadcasting its signal, it’s up to us to get on the same channel and receive what he’s broadcasting.
God’s signal doesn’t just carry information and images, it carries things like joy, peace, provision, wisdom, etc… When you use your mouth, in agreement with your heart, to access God’s broadcast signal, your prayer is effective. Check out these statements Jesus made about receiving.
Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. Mark 11:24
If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. John 15:7
Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. Matthew 18:19
In that day you will ask nothing of me. Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full. John 16:23-24
And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.” Matthew 21:22
And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. 15 And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him. 1 John 5:14-15
We all know Jesus is talking about asking according to God’s will in these statements, we just happen to know God’s will is Heaven on Earth, Jesus said so.
Prayer Works
Don’t give up on praying because nothing happened the last time you prayed. Keep praying, something is happening. As you declare God’s character with confidence, you are watering his Word that has been planted into your situation. You have the power of life and the authority of God in your mouth, use it to speak kingdom truth.
Find out what God says about your situation
Settle in your heart his character in that area
Adjust your thoughts and emotions to match God’s promises
Remain patient knowing that the seed is growing
Keep praying and declaring with confidence
God’s Word will not fail
Can The Devil Hinder Your Prayers?
The Lord's Prayer
When You Pray, Believe
It's Time To Deal With Your Stuff
Taking Ownership Of Your Emotions
The Secret Place
New Covenant Giving
Mixing Faith With Promises For Healing
A Heart Connected To Kingdom Realities
Baptism Of Spirit And Fire
Prayers of the Apostle Paul
I’m thankful for the Bible, aren’t you?! The written word is a collection of historical records, poetry, prophecy and doctrine. I personally love getting to peek into the minds and hearts of the authors. The Apostle Paul is an interesting person to study. We get to see his before and after Christ life, what a dramatic conversion! Of course Paul’s writings are where we get most of our New Covenant theology, but there is a specific aspect of his letters that are rich with insight, his prayers.
From time to time I like to look beyond doctrine into the human aspects of the people in the Bible, including Jesus. There are a few interesting things I noticed when looking at all the prayers of Paul, here is a complete collection of the prayers of the Apostle Paul.
I’m thankful for the Bible, aren’t you?! The written word is a collection of historical records, poetry, prophecy and doctrine. I personally love getting to peek into the minds and hearts of the authors.
The Apostle Paul is an interesting person to study. We get to see his before and after Christ life, what a dramatic conversion! Of course Paul’s writings are where we get most of our New Covenant theology, but there is a specific aspect of his letters that are rich with insight, his prayers.
From time to time I like to look beyond doctrine into the human aspects of the people in the Bible, including Jesus. There are a few interesting things I noticed when looking at all the prayers of Paul, here is a complete collection of the prayers of the Apostle Paul.
Romans
First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being reported all over the world. God, whom I serve with my whole heart in preaching the gospel of his Son, is my witness how constantly I remember you in my prayers at all times; and I pray that now at last by God’s will the way may be opened for me to come to you. Romans 1:8–10
Brothers, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that they may be saved. Romans 10:1
Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Romans 12:12
May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus, so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Romans 15:5–6
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:13
I urge you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to join me in my struggle by praying to God for me. Pray that I may be rescued from the unbelievers in Judea and that my service in Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints there, so that by God’s will I may come to you with joy and together with you be refreshed. The God of peace be with you all. Amen. Romans 15:30–33
1 Corinthians
I always thank God for you because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus. For in him you have been enriched in every way— in all your speaking and in all your knowledge—because our testimony about Christ was confirmed in you. Therefore you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed. He will keep you strong to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God, who has called you into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful. 1 Corinthians 1:4–9
The grace of the Lord Jesus be with you. 1 Corinthians 16:23
2 Corinthians
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows. If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer. And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort. 2 Corinthians 1:3–7
But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him. For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life. And who is equal to such a task? 2 Corinthians 2:14–16
This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of God’s people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God. Because of the service by which you have proved yourselves, men will praise God for the obedience that accompanies your confession of the gospel of Christ, and for your generosity in sharing with them and with everyone else. And in their prayers for you their hearts will go out to you, because of the surpassing grace God has give you. Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift! 2 Corinthians 9:12–15
To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” 2 Corinthians 12:7–9a
Now we pray to God that you will not do anything wrong. Not that people will see that we have stood the test but that you will do what is right even though we may seem to have failed. For we cannot do anything against the truth, but only for the truth. We are glad whenever we are weak but you are strong; and our prayer is for your perfection. 2 Corinthians 13:7–9
Galatians
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers. Galatians 6:18
Ephesians
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. . . . Ephesians 1:3
For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way. Ephesians 1:15–23
For this reason, I kneel before the Father, from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. Ephesians 3:14–21
Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should. Ephesians 6:19–20
Philippians
I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:3–6
And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God. Philippians 1:9–11
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6–7
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen. Philippians 4:23
Colossians
We always thank God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all the saints—the faith and love that spring from the hope that is stored up for you in heaven and that you have already heard about in the word of truth, the gospel that has come to you. All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God’s grace in all its truth. You learned it from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf, and who also told us of your love in the Spirit. For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints 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, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Colossians 1:3–14
Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. Colossians 4:2–4
1 Thessalonians
We always thank God for all of you, mentioning you in our prayers. We continually remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Thessalonians 1:2–3
And we also thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is at work in you who believe. For you, brothers, became imitators of God’s churches in Judea, which are in Christ Jesus: You suffered from your own countrymen the same things those churches suffered from the Jews, who killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets and also drove us out. They displease God and are hostile to all men in their effort to keep us from speaking to the Gentiles so that they may be saved. In this way they always heap up their sins to the limit. The wrath of God has come upon them at last. 1 Thessalonians 2:13–16
How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy we have in the presence of our God because of you? Night and day we pray most earnestly that we may see you again and supply what is lacking in your faith. Now may our God and Father himself and our Lord Jesus clear the way for us to come to you. May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you. May he strengthen your hearts so that you will be blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus comes with all his holy ones. 1 Thessalonians 3:9–13
May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it. 1 Thessalonians 5:23–24
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. 1 Thessalonians 5:28
2 Thessalonians
We ought always to thank God for you, brothers, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love every one of you has for each other is increasing. Therefore, among God’s churches we boast about your perseverance and faith in all the persecutions and trials you are enduring. 2 Thessalonians 1:3
With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may count you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may fulfill every good purpose of yours and every act prompted by your faith. We pray this so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Thessalonians 1:11–12
May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word. 2 Thessalonians 2:16–17
And pray that we may be delivered from wicked and evil men, for not everyone has faith. But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen and protect you from the evil one. We have confidence in the Lord that you are doing and will continue to do the things we command. May the Lord direct your hearts into God’s love and Christ’s perseverance. 2 Thessalonians 3:2–5
Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you. 2 Thessalonians 3:16
1 Timothy
I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he considered me faithful, appointing me to his service. 1 Timothy 1:12
I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone—for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all men—the testimony given in its proper time. . . . 1 Timothy 2:1
2 Timothy
I thank God, whom I serve, as my forefathers did, with a clear conscience, as night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers. Recalling your tears, I long to see you, so that I may be filled with joy. I have been reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also. For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands. For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline. 2 Timothy 1:3–7
May the Lord show mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, because he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains. On the contrary, when he was in Rome, he searched hard for me until he found me. May the Lord grant that he will find mercy from the Lord on that day! You know very well in how many ways he helped me in Ephesus. 2 Timothy 1:16–18
The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you. 2 Timothy 4:22
Titus
Grace be with you all. Titus 3:15
Philemon
I always thank my God as I remember you in my prayers, because I hear about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints. I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ. Your love has given me great joy and encouragement, because you, brother, have refreshed the hearts of the saints. Philemon 4–7
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Philemon 25
Pray from Christ's Finished Work
Prayer changes things. Prayer changes us, it changes the world around us, it changes people, but it doesn’t change God. Prayer doesn’t cause God to respond and give you what you want. God doesn’t have anything else to give to you. The only thing God has left to give you is wisdom, revelation and guidance on how to live within everything he’s already given you.
Prayer changes things. Prayer changes you and your world around you, but it doesn’t change God. Prayer doesn’t cause God to respond and give you what you want or need, he’s already done that. God doesn’t have anything else to give to you. The only thing God has left to give you is wisdom, revelation and guidance on how to live within everything he’s already given you. That’s why he gave you his spirit, so you would understand what he’s already given you.
1 Corinthians 2:12 Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God.
What things has he freely given you?
2 Peter 1:2 Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. 3 His divine power has given us EVERYTHING WE NEED FOR A GODLY LIFE through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 4 Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.
He HAS GIVEN you everything you need for a godly life. Are you experiencing everything you need to live a godly life? Probably not. Does that mean he hasn’t given you some of the things you need to live a godly life? No. It just means you aren’t personally connecting to or experiencing some of the things God has already given you.
So you should pray for wisdom and revelation, so that God’s spirit within you will help you understand what he’s already given you so that you can experience those things in this life.
Prayer Insights from King David
In seeking to know how to pray from our new creation identity, considering God’s promises, and from the finished work of Christ, we can learn from David’s prayer in Psalm 103. David knew how to pray because he knew God’s character, he prayed out of a heart that was focused on who God is rather than just out of his need.
1 Praise the Lord, my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. 2 Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits—3 who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, 4 who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, 5 who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
Praying from his soul
David started his prayer by praising God from his soul. Most of us pray from our mind rather than our soul. We want to know “why,” we want to understand, so we pray from our mind. We say, “God, I don’t understand but I’ll praise you anyway.” That fine and noble but it’s not praying from your soul. Your soul isn’t concerned with understanding, your soul wants to feel the prayer.
To pray/praise from your inmost being, your soul, is to feel the associated emotions of your prayer rather than just saying the words. Praise/prayer must engage your heart and your emotions, you must feel that what your praying is true or possible. You don’t really believe what you’re praying is possible unless it feels possible, otherwise it’s just an idea or information.
As part of the believing process, it’s important to feel that God’s promises are possible because your feelings make an impression in your heart, which is where you truly believe. All things are possible for those who believe.
Focusing on benefits
David turns his attention to all the good things God has given him, he cultivates thankfulness, he counts his blessings and he reminds himself that God gives good gifts.
Forgiveness and healing
David acknowledges that God forgives sins and heals diseases and redeems, all out of his loving kindness. David gets it, he gets that God is good, he knows his character and prays in such a way that basically just acknowledges who God is rather than what he needs. He trusts that God will be who he is for him.
Satisfies Desires
Here’s a big one, David acknowledges that God satisfies his desires with good things. God satisfies David’s desires? Traditional Christianity says you’re evil and there’s no good thing in you, why in the world would God satisfy David’s desires with good things? Isn’t David evil, incapable of godly desires? Apparently David didn’t believe so. He held a view of God that believes God will satisfy his desires. How would it change your prayer life if you were free enough to trust your desires because they’re godly?
New Covenant Fulfillments
David actually gave us a pretty good model of prayer. Check out these New Covenant fulfillments of the things that David prayed even under the Old Covenant. These are things to remember about yourself and others as you pray.
Ephesians 4:32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.
When you’re praying for yourself or others, remember that you/they’re already forgiven. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t repent, it just means you’re not in a state of unforgiveness before God, he’s not holding your sin against you. Repentance for the believer means to change your mind, change how you’re thinking about your sin or current situation and begin to think like God thinks about it.
1 Peter 2:24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.
One of the benefits of Christ’s atoning work on the cross is physical healing. There is a segment of folks who say that Peter is talking about spiritual healing, meaning salvation, but I disagree. The healing Jesus performed was physical. David acknowledged that God heals us from our diseases, he didn’t say God heals us from our spiritual darkness. In addition to forgiveness of sin and being made righteous, Jesus paid for physical healing.
Colossians 1:13 He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
The enemy has no power over you. Sin doesn’t give authority or rights to demons to attack or harass you. Jesus has all authority in Heaven and Earth and he’s shared it with his followers. Pray with authority when encountering demonic oppression in your life or others.
2 Peter 1:2 Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. 3 His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 4 Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.
Here we see our desires mentioned again. Christ can deliver you from your evil desires and transform you to have godly desires. He’s already transformed your spirit man, now allow him to shape your soulish man.
Again we see that through our knowledge of Jesus, we have everything we need in this life to live godly. Included with that knowledge are promises to help you experience God’s nature. This is an identity statement, you have been made one with God and can live in this life like Jesus did. He’s made us so many promises associated with our new creation identity that it causes us to live like Christ in this earth, experiencing all his benefits, just as David prayed.
Have This Mindset When You Pray
When we seek to pray for ourselves or others, we need to be aware of who God is, what he wants and how he thinks. This passage gives us insight into God’s mind. The Apostle Paul is addressing their concerns about people who have died in Christ and what the future holds. He ends with a very interesting idea that gives us great insight into the character of God and how we should pray.
1 CORINTHIANS 15:20 But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. 21 For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. 22 For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. 23 But each in turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him. 24 Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power. 25 For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. 26 The last enemy to be destroyed is death.
“The last enemy to be destroyed is death.” This is not difficult to catch but DEATH IS GOD’S ENEMY. Often we try to reason with death, well meaning Christians try to make us feel better by saying God is somehow using death. Uninformed believers are quick to associate death, in its various manifestations, with God’s will and teaching modalities.
Death is God’s enemy! In every shape, form and fashion, death is God’s enemy. God does not want death or anything that causes it, in your life. Jesus died to break the power of death over humans. He paid the price for sin so its effects would be rendered powerless over humans.
Am I saying God never wants you to be sick, in lack, depressed or experience death. Yes, that’s exactly what I’m saying. But he gave the planet to us for a period of time so, for the most part, God isn’t getting what he wants right now.
As you pray over your life and for others, remember that death is God’s enemy. You don’t have to try to understand death and lack related circumstances or somehow make room for them in your prayer life because God’s doesn’t want them in your life. There’s more to say on this idea, but I’ll end this idea with this, DEATH IS GOD’S ENEMY!
Do This When You Pray
Ask yourself, did Jesus do anything about this?
Ask yourself, is Jesus in me and am I in him?
Then speak what he did and expect to see the desires of your heart
EXPECT TO EXPERIENCE THE FRUIT OF WHAT JESUS PAID FOR AND ACCOMPLISHED!!
Send Away the Effects of Sin Through Prayer
If you’re like me, the importance of prayer in your life comes and goes. I’m always communing with God in my heart but specific, directed prayer comes and goes. I’d like to give you some profound, mystical reason why I flow in and out of directed prayer but I think I just get busy and don’t take the time. However, there are times where I do feel the leading of the Lord to pray in the spirit, or with specific words, over a specific matter.
Recently I felt the Lord give me some instruction on prayer. It was more what to think than what to pray, what to think while praying to be more specific. It started with something James said, “the effectual, fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”
The first thing I did was look up “availeth.” I moved on to look up all the words in James’ statement. Here’s what I found…
If you’re like me, the importance of prayer in your life comes and goes. That may be surprising coming from a pastor, but I’d rather be honest with you than act like Super-Christian.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m always communing with God in my heart but specific, directed prayer comes and goes. I’d like to give you some profound, mystical reason why I flow in and out of directed prayer but I think I just get busy and don’t take the time to pray in detail. However, there are times where I do feel the leading of the Lord to pray in the spirit, or with specific words, over a specific matter.
Recently I felt the Lord give me some instruction on prayer. It was more what to think than what to pray. What to think while praying, to be more specific. It started with something James said, “the effectual, fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”
The first thing I did was look up “availeth.” I moved on to look up all the words in James’ statement. Here’s what I found…
For context, let’s look at James’ whole section on prayer. Some have called James’ letter the New Testament book of Proverbs, because there are sections where he teaches in short topics.
James 5:13 Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. 14 Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. 16 Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. NIV
FERVENT PRAYER
My first observation is that effectual and fervent are two aspects of the same word, meaning effective. In some of our churches, the presence of the word “fervent” insinuates passionate, loud or emotional prayer. Some folks get a little out of hand with their fervency and displays of emotion, you’ve seen them . It’s not wrong to display strong emotion in prayer, as long as it’s not mistaken for spiritualism.
Whipping yourself up into an emotional frenzy doesn’t make God want to answer your prayer more, it only makes you more excited about what you’re praying about. Some folks even get fired up when they pray, but don’t actually believe in their hearts what they’re praying.
It’s damaging to your heart to pray something with strong emotion but not really believe it. When you pray, but don’t actually have trust it will happen, you’re sending a subtle message to your heart that you really don’t believe what you’re saying. That opens up a whole can of issues. Too often, emotional experiences are mistaken for a true spiritual manifestation. The presence of endorphins has often been mistaken for the presence of God.
So pray passionately, but make sure you’re connected to God in your heart and you’re confident in His faithfulness as you pray.
TRANSLATIONS
Another observation about the second half of James 5:16 came after comparing translations, check these out.
The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. NIV
The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results. NLT
The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. ESV
The prayer of a righteous man has great power to prevail. Berean
The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much. NASB
The prayer of an innocent person is powerful, and it can help a lot. CEV
The prayer of a good person has a powerful effect. GNT
Prayers offered by those who have God's approval are effective. GWT
The heartfelt supplication of a righteous man exerts a mighty influence. Weymouth
See more here: https://biblehub.com/james/5-16.htm
Like me, you’re probably used to comparing translations as you study the Bible, but I have to say, this is one of the most diverse translations I’ve run across. It’s interesting how so many people can translate a simple phrase in so many ways. I don’t think any of them are particularly right or wrong, I think they collectively paint a bigger picture.
The bigger picture is this, when righteous people pray, it’s powerful and effective. Which begs the question, who is righteous or what constitutes a righteous person?
We know that righteousness is by faith alone, and not of works. So anyone who has the righteousness of Christ can pray powerfully. Pretty simple. I might even add, the more you understand your identity in Christ, the more effectively you will pray, not because it’s more powerful but because you are more confident in God and will be more yielded to his corresponding influence.
RIGHTEOUS PERSON
Again, we know righteousness is given to us by God when we place our faith in Jesus. This particular word for righteous means “observing divine laws.”
What does that make you think of? There are two main ones I think of, love God and love people. So we could say, the prayer of a person who loves God and loves people is effective and powerful.
Do you want to pray effectively? Connect to God’s love for you and His love for others in you, then pray.
THEY WILL BE FORGIVEN
In the previous sentence James 5:15), James says that after a prayer is offered in faith, the LORD will heal the person and IF THEY HAVE SINNED, THEY WILL BE FORGIVEN.
Ok, let’s think this through. How are we forgiven? Through faith in the shed blood of Jesus, and that alone. We know that people aren’t forgiven because we’ve prayed for them. Any confusion is cleared up in the definition of forgiven.
Forgiven (aphiēmi) - leave, let go, sent away (the root word means “to separate")
To more accurately translate verse 15, we would say, when the righteous pray for people, their sins leave them. Or more specifically, the EFFECTS of their sins leave them.
Remember when Jesus gave his disciples the power to forgive sin? Given the accurate definition, he was actually giving them permission to send the effects of their sin away from them, only God can forgive sin.
This is what it looks like when Jesus sends away the effects of people’s sin…
Mark 1:29 As soon as they left the synagogue, they went with James and John to the home of Simon and Andrew. 30 Simon’s mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, and they immediately told Jesus about her. 31 So he went to her, took her hand and helped her up. The fever left her and she began to wait on them.
Her fever left her. When he prayed for her, the effects of sin and death left her. Sickness left her. This is the same concept as sins leaving us when we pray, otherwise known as forgiveness. When God forgives us, he sends our sins away INCLUDING the effects of those sins in our bodies. We may still have messes in our external lives to clean up, but in our mortal bodies, the death effect of sin is rendered ineffective.
The Apostle Paul wrote about this in his letter to the Romans.
Romans 8:1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, 2 because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death.
He goes on to discuss how it’s possible because Jesus is our sin offering and he adds instruction to be spiritually minded, for it is life and peace.
Jesus set this woman free from the law of sin and death. Sickness is the death effect of sin in our bodies. God doesn’t make us sick when we sin and the devil doesn’t gain the right/power to make us sick if we sin, death is just the fruit of sin.
STAY OUT OF SIN
Because Jesus condemned sin in his flesh, as the sin offering for the whole world, all who receive his spirit receive the effects of his victory. Death has no power over Jesus, the same is true for us. There is no sin in Jesus, there is no sin in our spirit, which is one with Jesus.
The obvious difference is that we still have physical bodies that can give into sin or more specifically, be out of harmony with God, which is what sin really is. But, the same spirit that raised Jesus from the dead is giving life to our physical bodies.
The take away is that we can pray away the effects of sin, just like Jesus did.
Now…it’s not wise to continue in sin, thinking you can just pray away its effects afterward. When you stay in sin, it hardens your heart and begins to dull your senses to God’s influence in your life. A hardened heart has great difficulty allowing God’s spirit to be effectual. So…stay out of sin, it will rob your confidence in the righteousness that’s in you and hinder you from allowing his spirit to bring life to you.
GOD SEPARATED SIN
My last observation is found in the root word for forgive. The root word for forgiven means “to separate.” Remember when God promised that he removed our sins from us, as far as the east is from the west? He did that when he forgave us, which he did when Jesus came out of that grave and offered his blood in the Heavenly Holy of Holies.
It’s interesting how we have trouble merging doctrinal truth, like forgiveness, to poetic language, like “our sins being removed from us as far as the east is from the west.” Understanding the concept doctrinally and poetically make forgiveness come alive for us.
Through Christ’s shed blood, we’re forgiven and when we place our trust in Jesus as our righteousness, God separates us from our sin. Sin is no longer our root/nature. God no longer looks at us through the lens of sin or outward obedience, he looks at the new heart and sees an individual that is like him, righteous and holy. Because God removed your sin from you, there is nothing to be held against you. How will that change your prayer life?
His desire is that you experience the effects of your sin being removed from you, which is SOZO: complete salvation; healing, wholeness, soundness, deliverance, prosperity.
This is what we get to do for people, we get to help them be set free from the effects of their sin. We get to help them experience God’s forgiveness. As you pray for people, help them understand that they’re forgiven. Help them root their faith deeply in the effects of Christ’s blood rather than in their sin. Confidently and boldly pray for people, knowing your identity, setting them free from the law of sin and death!
Your Will Be Done, On Earth As In Heaven
Prayer... What is it? Why should believers do it? Why do you pray? How do you pray?
These are all good questions. While the answers may seem obvious, many Christians do not have an active and effective prayer life. I think the reasons most Christians only pray when something is wrong is because we don't understand our role as ambassadors. Pray has very little to do with asking God to meet a need and much more to do with applying God's provision.
Prayer... What is it? Why should believers do it? Why do you pray? How do you pray?
These are all good questions. While the answers may seem obvious, many Christians do not have an active and effective prayer life. I think the reasons most Christians only pray when something is wrong is because we don't understand our role as ambassadors. Pray has very little to do with asking God to meet a need and much more to do with applying God's provision.
Remember last week's article, you are a friend of God, equipped by God to represent God. Jesus taught us to pray a very specific way, acknowledge God, set your mind on things above, speak to the kingdom realm and "command" it to grow as if the earth is Heaven. Last week I showed you the meaning and application of the word "come" in thy kingdom come, building on that let's look at "your will be done."
Jesus is not asking God to send his kingdom, he's speaking to the realm of God's domain as if it's supposed to be evident on earth. He prays or commands God realm of rule to be established here, now. Apparently, Jesus thinks it's a perfectly legal prayer to administer the quality of life that's found in Heaven on this earth.
Keep in mind he's not just praying as the Messiah, his disciples asked him to teach them to pray. He fully expects his followers to pray the same way. What would change in your prayer life if you saw prayer more as delivering Heaven's instructions to the earthly realm rather than as asking God to show up and do something?
We are ambassadors, representing God, executing his will in the earth. We are delivering and executing his will in our personal lives as believers but also as representatives of his kingdom to all the earth. Prayer is powerful. God has your back when you pray. The more confident you are in your identity as an ambassador, the more boldly you will pray. And the more boldly you pray, the more Heaven's state of existence will be established in the earth.
Don't back down, be bold. Take Jesus at his word. Trust God. Know his will and apply it to your prayer for yourself and others!
Jesus' Model of Prayer
OUR FATHER: Remember you are a child and friend of God
WHO IS IN HEAVEN: Set your mind on things above rather than the problem
REVERENT IS YOUR NAME: Honor and respect God in his power and majesty
YOUR KINGDOM GROW: His Kingdom has come and we command it to grow
YOUR WILL BE DONE: Jesus is God’s will, pray in agreement with who Jesus is
ON EARTH AS IN HEAVEN: God wants the earth to look like Heaven now
MEET OUR DAILY PROVISIONS: He meets our needs according to his riches
FORGIVE BECAUSE YOU’RE FORGIVEN: Thank him you’re forgiven in Christ
FOR HIS IS THE KINGDOM, POWER AND GLORY...AMEN!!
Discussion Questions
- What did you get out of the message Sunday?
- What is prayer?
- Why do you pray?
- Do you think prayer is effective?
- What would change is you saw prayer as delivering Heaven's instructions rather than asking God to show up?