Today I would like to speak to you about an aspect in our Christian life that oftentimes is underestimated and neglected by a large number of believers. What am I talking about? I am talking about our prayer life. As I have said in other occasions, a great reality about human beings is that we are impatient. We want what we want right now, we want everything Polaroid camera style, we want to see everything instantly. The problem that exists is that although prayer can work in this fashion, in a great percentage of the times it does not. But we can be sure of two things, and those are that prayer is the most powerful weapon in the universe, and that the prayer of all faithful believers will be heard by God. But like I said, this aspect of our Christian walk oftentimes is underestimated and neglected by many, and that is why we always experience those strange looks whenever we say to some one “I am going to pray about that.” Therefore, today let’s examine that portion of our Christian life that perhaps may be weak, or neglected. Today we are going to examine a historic event that will reveal to us three blessings that unleashed in the life of every believer through prayer. These three blessings are: peace, liberation, and miracles. Let’s now turn to the Word of God.
Acts 12:1-16 - Now about that time Herod the king stretched forth his hands to vex certain of the church. 2And he killed James the brother of John with the sword. 3And because he saw it pleased the Jews, he proceeded further to take Peter also. (Then were the days of unleavened bread.) 4And when he had apprehended him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four quaternions of soldiers to keep him; intending after Easter to bring him forth to the people. 5Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him. 6And when Herod would have brought him forth, the same night Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains: and the keepers before the door kept the prison. 7And, behold, the angel of the Lord came upon him, and a light shined in the prison: and he smote Peter on the side, and raised him up, saying, Arise up quickly. And his chains fell off from his hands. 8And the angel said unto him, Gird thyself, and bind on thy sandals. And so he did. And he saith unto him, Cast thy garment about thee, and follow me. 9And he went out, and followed him; and wist not that it was true which was done by the angel; but thought he saw a vision. 10When they were past the first and the second ward, they came unto the iron gate that leadeth unto the city; which opened to them of his own accord: and they went out, and passed on through one street; and forthwith the angel departed from him. 11And when Peter was come to himself, he said, Now I know of a surety, that the LORD hath sent his angel, and hath delivered me out of the hand of Herod, and from all the expectation of the people of the Jews. 12And when he had considered the thing, he came to the house of Mary the mother of John, whose surname was Mark; where many were gathered together praying. 13And as Peter knocked at the door of the gate, a damsel came to hearken, named Rhoda. 14And when she knew Peter's voice, she opened not the gate for gladness, but ran in, and told how Peter stood before the gate. 15And they said unto her, Thou art mad. But she constantly affirmed that it was even so. Then said they, It is his angel. 16But Peter continued knocking: and when they had opened the door, and saw him, they were astonished.
As I always say, to reach a better understanding of the message that God has for us today, it will be necessary to conduct a brief review in history. With this purpose in mind, let’s now briefly examine king Herod’s family line a little closer. Herod the great was the king that ruled during the time of the birth of Jesus and tried to kill Him. This was the king responsible for the most horrible crime that we can find in history. This was the king that order that all children under the age of be put to death in the Bethlehem area. This is something that has for ever been recorded in history, and we find it in Matthew 2:16 when we read “Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently inquired of the wise men.” After him, Herod Antipas ascended to power, and this was the king that ordered the decapitation of John the Baptist, so that he could give it to his daughter as payment for a dance. This is something that was also recorded in history, and we find it in Matthew 14:6-9 when we read “But when Herod's birthday was kept, the daughter of Herodias danced before them, and pleased Herod. 7Whereupon he promised with an oath to give her whatsoever she would ask. 8And she, being before instructed of her mother, said, Give me here John Baptist's head in a charger. 9And the king was sorry: nevertheless for the oath's sake, and them which sat with him at meat, he commanded it to be given her.” After him, Herod Agrippas ascended to power, and was the king that ruled during Peter’s time. This more or less brings us to this point in history. This king was highlighted by his immense hate of Christians, and his intention was to eliminate them all from the face of the earth. This is why we see that he killed Jacob son of John. This event is something that is declared very clearly in the verses that we are studying today when we read “Now about that time Herod the king stretched forth his hands to vex certain of the church. 2And he killed James the brother of John with the sword. 3And because he saw it pleased the Jews, he proceeded further to take Peter also. (Then were the days of unleavened bread.” Why is it so important that we know these details? These details are of the utmost importance because in them we can appreciate the constant confrontation that exists between good and evil, and the unceasing attack by Satan against the believers. Therefore, with this in mind let’s continue with our message for today.
Continuing we read “And when he had apprehended him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four quaternions of soldiers to keep him; intending after Easter to bring him forth to the people.” This verse lets us clearly see that this king intended to execute Peter, and that he had taken the best precautions available at the time to prevent him from escaping. He had taken such strong precautions because this was not the first time that he had jailed Peter with this same intention, but in his previous attempt, Peter had escaped. This is something that is very well reflected in Acts 5:17-20 when we read “Then the high priest rose up, and all they that were with him, (which is the sect of the Sadducees,) and were filled with indignation, 18And laid their hands on the apostles, and put them in the common prison. 19But the angel of the Lord by night opened the prison doors, and brought them forth, and said, 20Go, stand and speak in the temple to the people all the words of this life.” Therefore, it is for this exact reason that we see that the king order that Peter be guarded by 16 soldiers, but as if all of this was not enough, we also see that he ordered that two of them be bound to Peter by strong chains at all times. By taking these precautions the king was making sure that Peter would not be able to escape. He wanted to make sure that this time he would be able to execute him, but the believers had something very different in mind. Tell the person next to you, the believers prayed.
When we meditate in what was happening at that time and on what happens in our daily life, we quickly realize that things are not that different. I say that there isn’t much difference because Herod was not too different from our enemy today. Let’s look at a few details to see if what I am saying makes sense. King Herod hated the church, and our enemy hates the church; the king wanted to jail and chain the believers, and our enemy look to do the same trough vices and all of the rest of the bindings that exist in this world today; the king wanted to kill the believers, and our enemy look to do the same through the false doctrines and the propagation of the apostasy; the king at that time had the power to perform all of those atrocities, and our enemy is a real power and possesses the ability to influence all of those things to happen. Therefore, as we can see, there isn’t that much difference between this king of the past, and the enemy of humanity. Now, as I said in the beginning, prayers unleash three blessings in our life, that perhaps may not occur immediately, but we can be sure that they will happen. This is something that we can say with confidence because it is a promise from our Lord, just like we find in John 14:13 when we read “And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.” How many here today want to unleash blessings in your home today? Tell the person sitting next to you; we are going to unleash blessings.
The first blessing that prayer unleashes in the life of every faithful believer is peace. Let’s carefully examine what happened here so you can clearly understand what I am saying. Here we see that the Word tells us “Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him. 6And when Herod would have brought him forth, the same night Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains: and the keepers before the door kept the prison.” Why do we need to pay closer attention to this? We have o pay closer attention because at this point in time Peter was chained to two soldiers, he was imprisoned in a jail without the slightest hope of getting out; he was waiting to be executed. What attitude was demonstrated by this servant of God? Was Peter pleading for his life? Was Peter nervous and preoccupied? The answer is NO! As we can see in these verses, Peter was sleeping comfortably. I would venture to say that very few of us, if any, given the same set of circumstances would be able to do the same. How many of you have had a sleepless night because of a preoccupation? Now I am not talking about a preoccupation that would cost us out life as was the case here with Peter, I am talking about perhaps a financial preoccupation, or something to do with our jobs, or perhaps a situation with a family member or a loved one. Things that in the grand scheme of life have very little if any importance at all. But this not withstanding are things that oftentimes torment is and produce sleepless nights. How many say amen? In Peter’s case the circumstances were very difficult, but he slept. How could he do this? He was able to do it for two reasons. First, he knew that his life was not in the hands of a man, but in the hands of God. Second, it is as we find here in the verse today, “prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him.” Brethren, our prayers and the intercessory prayers of our brethren unleash peace in our life. It is for this reason that we are called to constant prayer. Look carefully at what the Word tells us in 1 Thessalonians 5:17 when we read “Pray without ceasing.” And also in James 5:15-16 we are told “And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he has committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. 16Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” Tell the person next to you, we have to pray.
The second blessing that prayer unleashes in the life of a faithful believer is that prayer liberates us. Here we find that the Word tells us “And when Herod would have brought him forth, the same night Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains: and the keepers before the door kept the prison. 7And, behold, the angel of the Lord came upon him, and a light shined in the prison: and he smote Peter on the side, and raised him up, saying, Arise up quickly. And his chains fell off from his hands. 8And the angel said unto him, Gird thyself, and bind on thy sandals. And so he did. And he saith unto him, Cast thy garment about thee, and follow me. 9And he went out, and followed him; and wist not that it was true which was done by the angel; but thought he saw a vision. 10When they were past the first and the second ward, they came unto the iron gate that leadeth unto the city; which opened to them of his own accord: and they went out, and passed on through one street; and forthwith the angel departed from him. 11And when Peter was come to himself, he said, Now I know of a surety, that the LORD hath sent his angel, and hath delivered me out of the hand of Herod, and from all the expectation of the people of the Jews.” Although this king had taken all the precautions that he could to prevent Peter from escaping, although he was incarcerated, chained and completely guarded, Peter was liberated. The chains that bound him fell from his hands, the jail cell that incarcerated him flung wide open, the soldiers that guarded the prison cell never saw him, and the heavy fortified doors to the city automatically opened. This is the God that we serve. This is the God in whom we have placed our trust, the almighty God. This is the God that we must preach, a God willing to liberate us from any situation. Let’s never forget that there are no difficult situations for God, ad that there is nothing impossible for Him. Man has many limitations but as we read in the scriptures en Luke 18:27 “And he said, The things which are impossible with men are possible with God.” Brethren, our enemy will not stop attempting to separate us from God’s presence, and just like Herod, he will take all available precaution to incarcerate and chain us in the prisons of this world, and the only way that we can defend our selves is through prayer. Do you want to unleash peace in your life? Do you want peace to reign in your home, work, and family? Then start praying!
The third blessing that we receive through prayer is that prayer unleashes miracles. Hera we see that the scripture tells us “And when he had considered the thing, he came to the house of Mary the mother of John, whose surname was Mark; where many were gathered together praying. 13And as Peter knocked at the door of the gate, a damsel came to hearken, named Rhoda. 14And when she knew Peter's voice, she opened not the gate for gladness, but ran in, and told how Peter stood before the gate. 15And they said unto her, Thou art mad. But she constantly affirmed that it was even so. Then said they, It is his angel. 16But Peter continued knocking: and when they had opened the door, and saw him, they were astonished.” Everything that we have been able to appreciate up till now can be described with just one word. Everything that happened in this brief moment of history with Peter can be described by the word “miracle.” Actually what happened her is comical.
I say this because they were praying for Peter’s liberation, they were presenting the problem before God and were asking Him for the solution, but evidently they were not doing so completely trusting that God would answer. This is why they could not believe the young woman when she told them that Peter was at the door. They told her she was crazy. There is a very important lesson here to be learned by all; the lesson is that we must never doubt the power of God. Unfortunately, doubt is one of the chains that our enemy uses to bind many. This is why it is no uncommon to find that the prayer life of many is very weak. Weak because many pray, but they do not do so completely trusting that God will answer. Weak because they do not place all of their hearts and faith into it, trusting in God’s power, mercy and grace. Just like the people that were congregated there in that place praying, we forget God’s word as we find in Isaiah 65:24 when we read “And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear.” The main problem that exists is that we get so involved in our difficulties and situations, that instead of praying confidently, we fling out prayers “just in case”. In other words we underestimate or we simply ignore the power that has been given to us through prayer. When we do this, then we will never see that He is present to liberate us from our difficulties, our fears, and our problems. When we do this we fail to realize that He is present to break the chains that bind us, and to open the fortified doors that imprison us. As I have said in numerous occasions, prayer is the perfect weapon, prayer is the only weapon that we can use to defend ourselves, and it is the only efficient weapon against the powers of darkness. They were united in prayer, they lifted theirs hearts up to the heaven, and the Father heard them and glorified Himself. Tell the person next to you; keep me in your prayers. Do you want to unleash miracles in your life? Then ask for prayer, and start to pray.
In conclusion. We can never underestimate or neglect our prayer life, because constant prayer is the key for leading a completely blessed life. As we have been able to appreciate, there is not too much difference between what happened to Peter at that time, and what happens to many of us now a day. This small portion of the scriptures reveals to us the permanent confrontation that exists between good and evil. I say this because the line of the Herod’s symbolizes Satan’s unceasing attack on the church.
Herod the great attempted to kill Jesus; his son had John the Baptist decapitated; his grandson had decapitated Jacob, and now had Peter incarcerated to execute him after Easter. But at the same time that Peter was suffering the chains, the church was suffering with him on their knees in prayer. What was the final result? The result was that the chains that were binding Peter fell from him, and the doors that incarcerated him flung open. Let’s never forget that there is great power in prayer. Sincere and persevering prayers produced peace in Peter’s life. Sincere and persevering prayers liberated this faithful servant. Sincere and persevering prayers unleashed a miracle in his life. Now the question that I ask is do you want to unleash these things in you life? Then examine your prayer life very closely, and pray to God. Never forget that God is present to liberate you; that God is present to forgive you, and that God will always hear the prayer of all faithful believers.
