Praying In The Interval

Daniel 10:9-14 KJV Yet heard I the voice of his words: and when I heard the voice of his words, then was I in a deep sleep on my face, and my face toward the ground. [10] And, behold, an hand touched me, which set me upon my knees and upon the palms of my hands. [11] And he said unto me, O Daniel, a man greatly beloved, understand the words that I speak unto thee, and stand upright: for unto thee am I now sent. And when he had spoken this word unto me, I stood trembling. [12] Then said he unto me, Fear not, Daniel: for from the first day that thou didst set thine heart to understand, and to chasten thyself before thy God, thy words were heard, and I am come for thy words. [13] But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days: but, lo, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me; and I remained there with the kings of Persia. [14] Now I am come to make thee understand what shall befall thy people in the latter days: for yet the vision is for many days.

Daniel 10:9-14 MOFFAT’S TRANSLATION I heard the sound of what he was saying, but when I heard his voice I fell down into a dead faint, my face upon the ground. [10] Then a hand touched me on my knees and hands all shaking. [11] He said to me, “O Daniel, a man greatly loved by God, stand erect and understand the message I now bring to you, for I have been sent to you at last.” [12] When he said this, I stood up trembling. Then he said to me, “Fear not, Daniel, for ever since you applied yourself to brooding on the future and to fasting humbly before your God, your prayers have been heard, and for the sake of your prayers I am here. [13] (The guardian angel of the realm of Persia thwarted me for twenty-one days, but Michael one of the archangels came to my aid, and I have left him to deal single-handed with the guardian angel of the Persian kings.)

I. INTRODUCTION -- SPIRITUAL WARFARE

Amazingly almost twenty years have passed quite rapidly since I read two books by Frank Peretti. He would go on to write many more but those two seemed to have the most impact on my thinking. This Present Darkness and Piercing the Darkness were two books where Peretti placed quite a description on what spiritual warfare seemed to look like.

In the first book, This Present Darkness, he brought to life a small quiet college town that was touched by the influence of its college. Behind the scenes at the college were a few professors who encouraged some of their students to dabble into the tenets of New Age philosophies. The extreme spiritual deception was something that none of the participants factored into their actions. Sadly some of the teachers and their students managed to infiltrate one of the churches and much damage was done because of the lack of prayer and dedication.

So Peretti wrote about a world beyond our eyes that was full of angels who fought very bitter battles with the terrible ogres of the underworld. Some of the theology that Peretti used is quite a stretch but there is one thing about it, his stories proved the great importance of a praying church. In the book, he wrote about a small church that was equipped with a pastor who knew the Word, knew how to pray, and encouraged the saints to give themselves to the ministry of prayer and fasting.

The faithful praying of some of the aged saints in this little church provided much strength to the angels who were battling in the heavenlies. Many scenes were portrayed in the book of how that a combination of praying and spiritual warfare worked in conjunction with the battle that was being fought.

Peretti’s story is not a new one and although it is obvious that he had a very fertile imagination with the story, the fact of the matter is that we are involved in a spiritual battle and our prayers are important to the Kingdom of God.

II. SPIRITUAL AUTHORITY COMES WITH PRAYER

-There is much authority that comes to the life of the saint of God who is willing to give himself to the ministry of prayer and fasting.

Arthur Mathews (Born for Battle) -- In any situation where Satan dominates and threatens, God looks for a man through whom He may declare war on the enemy. He purposes that through that man Satan be served notice to back up, pack up, and clear out!”

2 Corinthians 10:4-5 KJV [4] (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) [5] Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;