To understand the meaning of the phrase ‘Watch and Pray’, let us look at Matthew 26:36-46 where Jesus used this phrase. In the context of this scripture, in this situation where Jesus instructed His disciples to ‘Watch and Pray’, what He meant was:
• Stay awake and pray with me.
• Don’t sleep, be alert, and stay in the place of prayer.
• Don’t let sleep, sorrow (Luke 22:45) or any situation keep you from praying.
Today, as God’s Word goes forth, God will release the spirit of grace and supplication (Zechariah 12:10); the divine enablement to pray without ceasing on every one of us. The Holy Spirit, our Helper in the place of prayer will take over every weakness in our prayer life and set us free from everything that keeps us from praying fervently and consistently (Romans 8:26).
In the Gethsemane Prayer Experience recorded in Matthew 26:36-46, the Bible reveals 5 fundamentals of Prayer; 5 important things about watching and praying which we want to examine in this message.
1. It is a privilege and an honour for God give you an opportunity to watch and pray.
In Matthew 26:36-37, Jesus took all His disciples to Gethsemane, but when it was time to pray, He selected only three disciples to join Him in praying. Why did Jesus pick Peter, James and John to pray with Him? Was it because they were the most righteous and dedicated disciples? Certainly not! In Matthew 26:34 just before Jesus went with His disciples to Gethsemane, Jesus rightly pointed out that before the roster crows, Peter would deny Him three times that night. So if it was a choice based on righteousness, a choice based on it is only the person that has clean hands and a pure heart that can ascend into the hill of the Lord or stand in His holy place (Psalm 24:3-4), Peter had no business being picked. Was it then because Peter, James and John were the most powerful in prayer that Jesus chose them to join Him in praying? NO! As our text shows that at the time it mattered most, they were sleeping instead of praying. These three men were chosen by grace, not because they deserved it, not because they were the very best when it comes to prayer. When Jesus called them to come and pray with Him, they were given a special privilege and honour. It is a privilege and an honour for a Holy, perfect, sinless God to give us a platform where we can commune with Him, fellowship with Him, talk one on one with Him in spite of our flaws, weaknesses and shortcomings. This is the mindset we should have towards prayer. This is how we should view prayer. Our perspective to prayer should be it is an honour and a special blessing that out of the billions of people on this earth, God wants to hear my own voice on a daily basis. Our attitude to prayer should be I am not the most righteous and dedicated person, I am not the best when it comes to prayer, yet God is so mindful of me; so mindful of my situation, my needs, what I am going through that He has given me an access door through prayer to come before Him and receive mercy and find grace to help me anytime I am in need (Psalm 8:4, Hebrews 4:16).
Prayer is a privilege and an honour because in the place of prayer, God reveals deep secrets; God tells you things He doesn’t tell everyone (Jeremiah 33:3). In Matthew 26:38, Jesus opened up to Peter, James and John about what He was going through. He told these three disciples something about Himself, something about His situation that the other disciples didn’t get to hear about or know about. He said to them “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch with Me”.
Rather than see prayer as an obligation, a chore, or a bore, which many people do, we should be excited about any opportunity our Heavenly Father gives us to commune with Him in prayer. We should be thankful and appreciative of the grace God has extended to us and bestowed on us to come before Him and discuss with Him. We should be full of awe that even though we are far from being perfect, even though God’s understanding and wisdom is far above us, He wants to have daily conversations with us. We should be eager and excited about prayer knowing that deep and hidden things, which other people don’t get to know about will be revealed to us as we fellowship with God in the place of prayer.
2. Watch and Pray is what you do when you are at your weakest point, when you are at your darkest hour
When you are low in spirit, when you feel so weak, when you are facing your darkest hour; a most difficult time, the thing to do is to pray! Jesus said “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful even to death. Stay here and watch with me” (Matthew 26:38). In other words, I am going through a really tough time right now. I am in agony, I feel this situation is going to crush me, there is so much pain in my heart right now, and this is why now more than ever before, we need to pray. Jesus knew that prayer is the way out of tough and difficult times. Prayer is the thing to do when you don’t feel like praying, when situations around you are enough to discourage you from praying. James 5:13 says is there anyone among you in trouble, the person should pray!
How was Jesus able to pray in spite of the pain He was going through, the troubles that had surrounded Him? Jesus was not controlled by prayer stereotypes. Jesus didn’t allow the belief that prayer must always be done in a particular style and manner for it to be effective, for His prayers to be heard.
There are times when you want to pray and different prayer points keep flowing. There are also times when you want to pray, know you ought to pray, but you can’t even find the words to express what you are going through. Jesus didn’t have a long prayer list at this time, He didn’t have so many things to say at this time, but what He could say was enough (Matthew 26:39, 42).
David discovered that even those times when He couldn’t even say anything, His heart was heavy and all He could do as He was before God was shed tears, those tears were enough. God received those tears the same way God receives spoken and written prayer requests (Psalm 56:8-9, Revelation 8:4).
But prayer stereotypes will tell you for your prayers to be heard and effective you have to start with praise, then confess your sins, before you present your requests. God won’t hear you or your prayers won’t be effective if they don’t follow some particular processes and procedures. The truth is that in everyday life, we find ourselves in situations where certain prayer models can’t work. For instance, if you are in a plane about to crash, death is staring you right in the face, a simple JESUS! Can be heard and accepted by God as a call to intervene and save you. A prayer of Lord, help me muttered under your breath without you even opening your mouth, can be heard and answered by God.
Ephesians 6:18 says praying always with all prayer and supplication. There is nothing like one size; one model, one format fits all when it comes to prayer. The only way you can pray without ceasing, you can pray when you are weak and when you are strong, when you are bubbling with joy and when like Jesus you are deeply sorrowful and distress, is if you are not bound by prayer stereotypes and can pray all manner of prayers, you can pray in different ways and styles, you can find a way to communicate with God no matter where you are or what you are going through.
3. Watch and Pray is not a solo activity
By yourself you are unprotected (Ecclesiastes 4:12). Everyone needs a few sincere and reliable people to hold up your hand in prayer. You can never get to a level where you are so experienced, skilled, knowledgeable or anointed that you don’t need the prayer support of other people.
Jesus didn’t feel too heroic, too high up there to open up about His low moments. Jesus was able to tell Peter, James and John, my soul is exceedingly sorrowful, stay here and watch with me. I am so low right now, I am going through so much right now, please join me in praying about this situation.
Part of the reason why many spiritual giants, great men and women of God reach such great heights then crash badly is because they failed to see the importance of having prayer support. They felt it would be shameful or they would lose their position or their respect if they opened up to anyone about their pain, struggles and weaknesses. It is easy for someone without a prayer support to be easily empowered (Ecclesiastes 4:12).
The devil knows the importance of having people pray with you and for you that’s why one of the things he does when he wants to launch an attack on a person is to get them to cut off and withdraw from the assembly or fellowship of other believers (Hebrews 10:25). It is easy for depression to thrive and take root when a person is isolated and cut off from other people. In Judges 18:7-28, the people of Laish were conquered and displaced from their land because they were far from other people, had no ties with anyone. We need prayer ties, prayer partners, prayer support groups even if it’s made up of only two or three people, to help us go through the journey of life. Don’t let bad experiences; people you confided in before that disappointed you, get you to the point where you cut off from other people or keep your pains and struggles close to your chest. Watch and pray is not a solo activity.
Note that Jesus did not delegate the prayer for the most critical part of His life to His disciples He told them to join Him in praying, but He Himself went to pray about the situation before Him. You can’t delegate prayer for your life, especially for the most important aspects of your life to another person. You can’t leave the prayer for the most trying and difficult time of your life to another person no matter how much the person professes to love you, the position the person occupies in your life, or the grace the person has for prayer. You can get others to pray with you and for you, but you must never delegate or assign prayer for your life and destiny to another person.
4. It is risky and dangerous not to watch and pray
The danger of not watching and praying is that we can easily fall for the traps the devil has set for us. Jesus made it clear to Peter, James and John that the reason why they need to watch and pray is so that they don’t fall into temptation (Matthew 26:41).
The devil doesn’t spare anyone when it comes to temptation. If He could tempt Jesus, He will certainly tempt you and I (Matthew 4:1-11, Matthew 26:39, 42).
1 Peter 5:8 tells us that the devil walks about like a roaring lion looking for who to devour; looking for who he can use sin to destroy the person’s life and destiny. The crafty way he goes about this is to plant temptations where you least expect, where you are not likely to pay attention to (Genesis 4:7).
As the devil subtly brings temptations our way, God on the other hand positions a door of escape for these temptations (1 Corinthians 10:13). God has put before us exit doors out of sin. The thing is that these doors are usually narrow and difficult to go through (Matthew 7:14). It may cost us our job, losing some friendships and relationships, making some sacrifices, which many people aren’t ready to do. The escape route Joseph followed to avoid falling for Potiphar’s wife temptation wasn’t an easy door to walk through. He ended up going to prison, but there were great rewards and blessings that came to Joseph for going through God’s exit door.
I pray that we won’t enter through the doors God has put before us as an exit door; as an escape route from sin and temptation.
5. Watch and pray won’t exonerate or exclude you from satanic attacks or from trials and afflictions
Have you ever had such a refreshing time with God, an encounter with God’s power, a touch of God’s Spirit, only for you to leave that awesome time with God and be hit by an attack from the kingdom of darkness, or the battle you have been facing becomes more intense, or the trial you are going through gets more challenging?
This was what happened to Jesus after the Gethsemane Prayer Experience. As He prayed, an angel came and strengthened him (Luke 22:43), his sweat was like blood (Luke 22:44). This was no ordinary prayer time. But what happened next? He was arrested and then crucified (Matthew 26:46-66).
Jesus wasn’t intimated, threatened by the attacks and trials that came after praying to God because He knew that in the place of prayer, battles are fought and won, and the host of heaven work in your favour. Prayer did not exonerate or exclude Jesus from attacks from the kingdom of darkness or from going through trying and difficult times, but prayer launched Him into amazing testimonies of God’s faithfulness and power.
God gave Him the testimony of He is not here! (Matthew 28:6). They came seeking Jesus in the tomb after His crucifixion, only to discover that He is no longer there, God had lifted Him. As you remain fervent and consistent in the prayer, as you pray even when you don’t feel like praying, even when it looks like your world is falling apart, God will give you a testimony of ‘He is not here!’ God will lift you from where people think you will remain for a long time or for life. God will give you a testimony of ‘the stone has been rolled away’ (Mark 16:4). Every stone no matter how large; every blockage, every limitation they have used to lock you up and block your progress, to keep you from moving from the level you are will be divinely rolled away and God will lift you to a higher and better level. Your comeback, your lifting, your promotion after you have suffered hardship, ridicule, affliction and troubles for a little while (1 Peter 5:10) will be so great that the powers and forces of darkness will regret every attack they launched at your life and destiny (1 Corinthians 2:8).
Prayer is too good not to pray. Let us daily call on God, let us continually approach God’s throne of mercy to access the wonderful privileges, benefits and blessings that are found in the place of prayer.
