Our text today is found in Ephesians 6. A couple of weeks ago we ministered on the armor of God presented in verses 10-17.i Paul begins by saying,
“Finally, my brethren, [much of what Paul has said previously in this epistle is leading up to this exhortation.] be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.”
Paul then uses the metaphor of a soldier’s armor to illustrate what we need for winning spiritual battles. This equipping is particularly important if we are to stand strong ‘in the evil day.’” ii
The evil day is any season in which the attacks of the devil are particularly intense. Do you remember the temptation Jesus experienced in Luke 4? There the Devil made a concerted effort to deceive and divert Jesus from His mission—to get Him off track—to move Him away from complete obedience to the Father. He tried to get Jesus to turn a stone into bread to satisfy His hunger after fasting 40 days. When that failed, he offered Him all the glory of the world if He would simply bow in worship to him. Finally, he tried to get Jesus to jump off the top of the temple so everyone could see God supernaturally rescue Him and, therefore, admire Him for His exaltation. This time was an intense encounter for Christ to endure. It was an “evil day” during His time on earth. Luke 4:13 marks it off from the ordinary opposition by recording, “When the devil had finished temping Jesus, he left him until the next opportunity came” (NLT). Of course, the time of Jesus’s arrest and crucifixion was an even more “evil day.”
We have to stay fully equipped because we don’t know when we will face a battle like that. None of us will ever be attacked at the same level Jesus was, but we all have our battles. And having on the armor described in Ephesians 6:10-17 is essential for winning those battles.
“Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” That is the armor Paul describes.
Having completed the metaphor, Paul then states the most crucial factor in standing against the enemy. Ephesians 6:18-20: “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints— 19 and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.”
There are some vital secrets to effective prayer in that verse. First notice he says: Prayer is to be “in the Spirit”—empowered by the Spirit. We are to pray with dependence on the Spirit for guidance and enablement. Many Christians only pray out of a carnal mind. They have never learned to pray in cooperation with the Spirit. We cannot go into this with depth today, but we must learn to respond to the Spirit’s promptings when we pray. Have you ever been in an extended time of prayer and suddenly you knew you were operating in a higher level of prayer—you knew the Spirit was prompting the subject and words of the prayer? At one level the Christian is in Christ and is always praying by the grace of God. But Paul is dealing with something more practical here—just as we saw in the breastplate of righteousness—He is giving practical guidance. Paul is calling us to pray in conscious dependence and obedience to the promptings of the Holy Spirit.
Second, we are to be “watchful” in prayer. The Greek word translated watchful is a-grup-neo. It’s basic meaning is to be alert and awake.iii Metaphorically it means to be attentive to spiritual things—paying attention to what’s going on in the spiritual realm—not occupied with the things of this world—not just going through the motions, but fully engaged in prayer.
Third, our praying is to be “with all perseverance.” Jesus said in Matthew 7:7, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.” In the Greek all the verbs are in the present tense which indicates continuous action. The Amplified captures the idea better: “Keep on asking and it will be given you; keep on seeking and you will find; keep on knocking [reverently] and [the door] will be opened to you.” Don’t give up; stay with it; persevere. I have had seasons in which one quick prayer after another got answered. But that is rare. Usually, answers come as I persevere in prayer. I am currently enjoying the answer to a couple of prayers that I prayed for many years. I know God could have answered those prayers the moment I asked. I don’t fully understand God’s timing with the answer. But I know perseverance was necessary even when I was seeing no visible results. It’s not so much that we earn an answer through perseverance. It has more to do with the changes that happen in us as we seek and interact with the Lord, so that we are made more ready to receive the answer. If you have been praying for something for a long time, don’t lose heart. You may be one breath away from the breakthrough.
Fourth, pray for others: “supplication for all the saints.” Of course, you can’t pray for each and every Christian on earth. But don’t leave anyone out because you don’t like them, or because they’re not in your denomination, or even because they’re giving you a hard time. No matter what’s going on in your relationship with another person, praying for that person always appropriate.
Paul makes special request of prayer for himself and the advancement of the gospel. Our prayer life should not just be requests that we and fellow believers are comfortable. We must pray that
the gospel goes forth with power and authority. Pray for those on the front lines of the battle. They need our support. Paul is an example of such people. After requesting prayer for all the saints, in verses 19-20 he adds “and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.”
Fifth, and this is the focus of the message today, pray “with all prayer.” Both the Amplified and NIV make this clearer. The Amplified says, “…with all [manner of] prayer and entreaty.” The NIV translates the phrase, “…with all kinds of prayers and requests….” Do you pray “, “…with all kinds of prayers….” Or are you one-dimensional in your prayer life?
This is a crucial key to having a strong prayer life. We must develop the ability to pray “…with all kinds of prayers.” Prayer is boring when you don’t know much about it. It doesn’t take me very long to tour an art gallery because I don’t know much about art. I look at a painting and say, “Yes, that’s a beautiful meadow.” I quickly go to the next and quickly appreciate a painting of a portrait. When I come to an abstract, I just see a bunch of lines and colors. None of it is very interesting, and for that reason I’m out of there in a short time. In contrast, an artist can see things in a painting I would never notice. He can spend hours in the gallery and want to stay longer. He knows the subject and has developed an appreciation for art.
Most Christians cannot pray very long because they don’t know the subject very well and their praying tends to be one-dimensional. Once they have given God a list of what they want, they’re done. But that is only one dynamic of prayer. And Paul is saying, you need more than that to win the battles you will face as a Christian.
Football teams must have a variety of plays if they want to be champions. A one-dimensional team will never make it to the playoffs. A team that is only able to throw the ball, but has no running game, is at the mercy of a team that can do both. Great teams have to have a strong defense and a strong offense. Can you imagine a team trying to win the NFL championship with only one good play? Every time they get the ball, they run a sweep to the right. That team would be lucky to ever get any score on the board. The ability to maneuver in a variety of ways is essential for an effective football team.
MMA fighters must have a variety of skills. That keeps their opponent off balance. That can give them the advantage of surprise. They must know how to box. They must know how and when to kick. If the fight goes to the ground, they need wrestling and jiu-jitsu skills.
In our text Paul is talking about spiritual warfare. And the most important component is “all kinds of prayer.”
What kinds of prayer available to us? I want to list a few of those to alert us to the possibilities and encourage you to expand your prayer life. This is by no means an exhaustive list. But it should highlight the need for variety and flexibility. We will only have time to touch on each one. But as we go through these ask yourself, “Am I exercising myself in that form of prayer? Is this something I ought to intentionally incorporate into my prayer life?”
1. Petition
That’s the most common type of prayer and the one that many Christians rely on almost entirely. This is the bread and butter of prayer. Jesus told us to ask, and it would be given to us. James said we “have not because we ask not.”iv Petition is asking God to meet my need. Jesus taught us to pray, “Give us this day our daily bread.” That’s petition. It’s not selfish to ask God for help. It’s not selfish to ask God for things. It actually honors God and affirm our trust in His goodness. Jonah found himself in a fix of his own making. Because of his disobedience, a storm came and he wound up in a fishes’ belly. It was a matter of life and death. Jonah later testified, “I cried out to the LORD because of my affliction, And He answered me” (Jonah 2:2). Even though Jonah hadn’t done everything right, God still heard his prayer and helped him. Petition is the most natural kind of prayer. When we’re in trouble or when we have a need, it is normal and right to call out on God for help. Most of us understand this kind of prayer. We just need to use it more.
2. Thanksgiving
Phil 4:6 tells us to “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.” Instead of worrying about things, we should take them to the Lord in prayer, make our requests known unto God (that is the prayer of petition). But notice those two additional words in this passage: “with thanksgiving.” Thanksgiving does not come as natural as petition. Our kids don’t have to be taught to petition. As soon as they’re out of the womb they’re screaming for something. But we have to teach them to be thankful. When we have learned to mix thanksgiving into our prayers, we are maturing and making some progress.
Why is thanksgiving so important? It’s not because God needs His ego stroked. He is completely sufficient within Himself and needs nothing from us. But He delights in us, and like any good parent, enjoys blessing us with good things. It is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom” (Luke 12:32).
More than that, we benefit when we give thanks to the Lord. Our faith is strengthened when we take time to count our blessings and thank God for the good things He has given us.
Petition without thanksgiving orientates us toward problems, rather than toward God. It’s when we lift our eyes toward heaven and give thanks that we are assured of answers. If He answered that prayer, He can and will answer this prayer. When we mix thanksgiving with our petitions, we are developing grateful hearts. A good custom is to give thanks before each meal. With all the eating on the run in our culture, it’s easy to get slack about that. But it is a good thing to pause before each meal and thank God you have something to eat. Don’t take that for granted. Many in the world don’t enjoy the abundance of food that we have. Be thankful for what God has already done for you, and you will be in a good position to receive more.
3. Worship
Thanksgiving is good preparation for worship. It’s difficult to worship God from a heart of ingratitude. So, if you’re having trouble entering into worship, take time to count your blessings and thank God for some things. Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise; then worship at His footstool.v Then turn your attention on the Source of all the goodness in your life. Then exalt Him for who He is. The Seraphim in heaven cry, “Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord Almighty.”vi Worship is a response to God’s goodness and love. “We love Him because He first loved us.”vii In thanksgiving we are appreciating what God has done for us. In worship we are appreciating who God is to us. Ps 99:9 “Exalt the LORD our God, And worship at His holy hill; For the LORD our God is holy.”
If we are living a lifestyle of gratitude and worship during the week, when we come together at church it culminates in a powerful experience of God’s presence. God inhabits the praises of His people.viii
My working definition of prayer is “communication with God.” We live and breathe prayer in all its various forms and expressions. Worship is one of those expressions. If we’re singing songs and we’re not communicating with God in the adoration of Him, then we are not praying. But if we’re singing a song that says, “Come Holy Spirit we need you; come sweet Spirit I pray,” and we’re genuinely asking the Holy Spirit to do that, then that’s prayer. We’re not just singing words, we’re praying. I am amazed at how many people go to church and just watch the song leader sing and don’t actually sing themselves. That is such a sad waste of time. What’s being offered is a time to of holy communion with the Lord. Cindy illustrated that last week with the analogy of the role call at the beginning of the class. Are you really present during the worship time, or is your mind miles away doing something else?
4. Confession
You said a prayer of confession when you were born again. You acknowledged your sin and sinfulness and asked the Lord to forgive you based on His sacrifice at the cross.
Psalm 51 is a beautiful example of confession. There David confesses his sin with Bathsheba and asks forgiveness. The psalm opens with these words, “Have mercy upon me, O God, According to Your lovingkindness; According to the multitude of Your tender mercies, Blot out my transgressions. 2 Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, And cleanse me from my sin. 3 For I acknowledge my transgressions….”
Jesus taught us to pray daily, “Forgive us our sins, for we forgive everyone that is indebted to us.”ix It’s best to not rush through that prayer too quickly. Don’t just make it a general statement like, “If I’ve done anything to offend you, I’m sorry.” No, what did you do that was displeasing to the Father? How have you grieved the Holy Spirit? Just as we name our blessings one by one, we also deal with our transgressions one by one. Why? because you cannot turn from something you haven’t even identified. Repentance is turning from something wrong. It is acknowledging a wrong and doing it different in the future. I must identify the wrong behavior before I can change that behavior. Make that part of your prayer life. Step 10 of AA Twelve Step program says, “Continued to take personal inventory, and when we were wrong, promptly admitted it.”x This is a key to living above the power of sin. “The blood of Jesus …cleanses us from all sin.”xi 1 John 1:9 promises, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” God’s part is the cleansing; our part is the honest confession and turning from the behavior.
5. Conversational
Prayer is a conversation with God. We talk to Him about what’s going on in our lives. We talk with Him about our work and how to get it done. We talk with Him about our families and concerns we may have. Throughout the day, we’re carrying on a conversation with God. You can do that and still get your work done. In fact, you’ll likely do a better job. How many are able to listen to the radio and work at the same time? Most of us can. And if we can do that, we can also be talking to and listening to God while we go through our daily routine.
Prayer includes asking God questions. In Psalm 10 David asked God, “Why do You stand afar off, O LORD? Why do You hide in times of trouble?” It’s ok to process your feelings with God. He knows them already. It’s ok to ask Him what’s going on. When Moses first went to Pharaoh with the word God had given him, Pharaoh made it worse on the Israelite slaves. He added the task of gathering straw and demanded the same production. This was the opposite of what Moses expected. Listen to Moses’ prayer in Ex 5:22-23 “So Moses returned to the LORD and said, ‘Lord, why have You brought trouble on this people? Why is it You have sent me? 23 For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in Your name, he has done evil to this people; neither have You delivered Your people at all.’" There’s the question. The answer from God comes in the next verse, Ex. 6:1 “Then the LORD said to Moses, ‘Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh. For with a strong hand he will let them go, and with a strong hand he will drive them out of his land.’"
When you ask God a question, listen for His answer. Listening is a big part of prayer. We must learn how to listen and not just talk at God. We must learn how to carry on a conversation with God in prayer.xii Sometimes the conversation is intense, as was Moses in Exodus 5. Most of the time, it is a casual conversation during our day. Then there are times when we shut everything out and have a focused conversation with the Lord. It must be a two-way conversation. It’s not just just talking and asking question, it’s also listening to His answer.
6. Contemplative
Sometimes prayer is wordless. Sometimes it’s waiting on the Lord. Sometimes it’s stilling our hearts before the Lord and getting Him in focus. Ps 46:10 “Be still, and know that I am God…” There is a time to speak and a time to be silent.xiii Silent prayer is meditative in nature. It ponders who God is and what He does. It rests in His all sufficiency. If my mind is coming up with the grocery list, I have not yet entered into contemplative prayer. Waiting in God’s presence requires a disciplined mind; but it can be very rewarding. It can bring blessed assurance. David said in Ps 62:1, “Truly my soul silently waits for God; From Him comes my salvation.” Waiting, waiting in the presence of a holy, all-sufficient God.
Contemplative prayer can lead to precious intimacy with God. “I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine.”xiv Basking in the love relationship you have with the Lord; simply enjoying His presence is a mode of prayer.
7. Corporate
In Matt.18:18-20 Jesus made this promise: "Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. 19 "Again I say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven. 20 For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them."
There is an authority in corporate prayer that is not there in individual prayer. We need one another in order to fulfill the mission God has given us to do. When God’s people gather in sincere unity and agree in prayer, Jesus said “it will be done for them by My Father in heaven.” Yes, we pray individually. There is something special about a husband and wife praying together. But authority is especially released when God’s people gather in one accord and pray. We saw that happening in Acts 2 when the Holy Spirit was poured out on the Church. You see it happening later in Acts 4 when Peter and John were threatened by the Sanhedrin and Acts 12 when Peter was imprisoned by Herod. God intervened powerfully in those situations because the church came together in prayer.
8. Tongues.
In 1 Cor 14:15 Paul talks about four expressions of prayer. “What is the conclusion then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will also pray with the understanding. I will sing with the spirit, and I will also sing with the understanding.” In the context, Paul equates “pray with the spirit” as praying in tongues and he equates “sing with the spirit” as singing in tongues. Do you pray in tongues? Do you sing in tongues? This is a particular kind of praying that Paul urged believers to participate in. He said in 1 Cor. 14:18 “I thank my God I speak with tongues more than you all.” Where did Paul do most of his praying in tongues? The next verse makes it clear that he mostly did that in his private prayer life.
But why would a person want to pray in tongues? 1 Cor. 14:4 “He who speaks in a tongue edifies himself….” Edify means to build up or strengthen.xv When I pray in tongues my inner man is strengthened. Out of that strength I can then minister to others. Paul said he prayed in tongues more than any of the other believers. He knew the value of building his own spirit in preparation for building up others. Praying in tongues opens the spiritual realm and enables a person to pray mysteries beyond what they rationally know.xvi It is a powerful part of one’s prayer arsenal. Don’t leave home without it.
9. Groanings
Rom 8:26-27 says, “Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. 27 Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God.”
The Living Bible says, “…but the Holy Spirit prays for us with such feeling that it cannot be expressed in words.”
Amplified says, “…pleads in our behalf with unspeakable yearnings and groanings too deep for utterance.”
The Holy Spirit moves in your spirit, expressing a cry to God that does not come out in words; but you most certainly know it’s happening. I have had times when I would literally double up from the internal pressure I felt. About all you can do is groan; but it is all getting communicated to the Father.
10. Intercession
Sometimes intercession is in the form of groanings. Sometimes it is expressed in tongues. It can be gentle, or it can be intense. Petition is prayer for yourself. Intercession is prayer for someone else.xvii We have several examples of Moses interceding for the children of Israel in the wilderness. Daniel interceded for the nation of Israel in chapter 9. He based his prayer on biblical revelation. He identified with the nation and confessed their sin. He asked God to fulfill His promise to bring them back to Jerusalem after 70 years of captivity. In Genesis 18 Abraham interceded for Sodom.
Now let me tell you about the greatest intercessor of all time. His name is Jesus. Heb. 7:25 tells us we have a Great High Priest who ever lives to make intercession for us. Don’t think you’re wasting time when you’re interceding for others. You’re doing the same thing Jesus is doing. It must be important if the Lord of Glory spends His time doing it. Amen? So, we get to join in with Him.
11. Command
Sometimes we pray against the obstruction, rather than about the obstruction. Sometimes we say to the mountain “Be removed and cast into the sea.”xviii Sometimes we say to the demon, “Go and do not return.” In Luke 4 Jesus commanded an unclean spirit to come out of a man. Paul commanded a spirit of divination to come out of a young woman in Acts 16. Jesus rebuked the winds and brought calm to a storm.xix All of those prayers set boundaries in the spiritual realm and on nature. They are authoritative in nature.
Sometimes prayer is invading the enemy’s territory; taking ground;xx telling the devil to turn loose of captives. Sometimes in prayer you’re speaking directly to the enemy by the authority of the Holy Spirit. We never command God; but under God’s authority we can command other things.
12. Declarative
With declarative prayer you’re not asking God to do it; you’re declaring it done by the word of the Lord. I know “the Lord is my shepherd.” Therefore, based on the authority of Scripture, I declare that “I shall not want.” I declare that “goodness and mercy will follow me.” If you have prayed about something and gotten a 1 John 5:15 assurance that God has heard you on the matter, it may be time to switch from petition to declaration in that prayer.
One of the great prayers of declaration in the Bible is the Aaronic blessing in Numbers 6. It was used by the priests to pronounce blessing on the people. Parents should do this. Pastors should do it. Godly employers should pronounce blessing on their employees.
Scripture provides foundational truth for our prayers. Learn how to pray the scriptures. Learn how to draw from the authority of Bible verses as you pray. Hide that word in your heart and let the Holy Spirit quicken it when you’re praying.
Sometimes in prayer the Holy Spirit brings us into a prophetic mode where we are declaring what God is doing about an issue. The best way to move into a prophetic ministry is to first learn to pray prophetically. Learn how to partner with the Holy Spirit in prayer so that the prayer is flowing out of His unction rather than just your own thinking.
Conclusion:
We have mentioned 12 modes of prayer and there are more. We all have room for growth in this vital area of our walk with God. The benefits are indescribable. The primary benefit comes in the doing. We can talk about it; we can teach about it; that is helpful. But we learn it best by doing it.
My objective has been to encourage you to grow in your prayer life. Venture out of your comfort zone and try another expression of prayer that you don’t often operate in. Ask the Holy Spirit to teach you. He is the best of all teachers. He will lead you into all truth.xxi
ENDNOTES:
i See my message entitled “Stand Your Ground,” preached 6-20-21.
ii All Scripture quotes are from the New King James Version unless indicated otherwise.
iii Cf. Spiros Zodhiates, The Complete Word Study Dictionary: New Testament. 1992 (Iowa Falls, IA: World Bible Publishers, Inc., 1994) s.v. no. 69 agrupneo. 76.
iv Luke 11:9; James 4:2.
v Psalm 100:4; 99:5.
vi Isaiah 6:3 NIV.
vii I John 4:19
viii Cf. Ps. 22:3.
ix Luke 11:4
x This is the tenth step in the Alcoholics Anonymous twelve step program.
xi 1 John 1:7
xii 1 Thess. 5:17 tells us to pray without ceasing. Conversational prayer is a big part of doing that.
xiii Ecclesiastes 3:7
xiv Song of Solomon 6:3
xv EDIFICATION, EDIFY, EDIFYING (from Vine's Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words, Copyright (c)1985, Thomas Nelson Publishers).
xvi 1 Cor. 14:2. In this chapter Paul is correcting some misuse of tongues by the Corinthian church; but he also affirms the value of this kind of prayer (1 Cor. 14:39).
xvii Jesus story in Luke 11:5-8 is a powerful example of intercession.
xviii Mark 11:23
xix Matthew 8:23-27.
xx Matthew 16:18
xxi John 16:13; 1 John 2:27.
