“THE PRAYERS” Acts 12:1-5
FBCF – 3/20/22
Jon Daniels
INTRO – We talk a lot about prayer around here. We do a lot of praying around here. We believe in the power of prayer around here.
Listen to these quotes about personal prayer:
- Pastor David Jett’s daily prayer: “Lord, SPEAK to me today – SEARCH me today – SHOW me today – SEND me today.”
- “The saint who advances on his knees never retreats.” (Jim Elliot)
- “Be sure that no time is so well spent as that which a man spends on his knees.” (J.C. Ryle)
- “Pray without ceasing.” (1 Thessalonians 5:17)
Then these about corporate prayer:
- “It is not possible that the Lord will be deaf to His people when they are in earnest about a matter that concerns His glory.” (Charles Spurgeon)
- “The prayer meeting is the pulse of the church…The prayer meeting is the rallying point where the power of faith in the church concentrates, & takes hold on the arm that moves the world…” (JB Johnston)
- “The thermometer of a church is its prayer meeting.” (Vance Havner)
- “No matter what I preach or what we believe in our heads, the future will depend upon our times of prayer.” (Jim Cymbala)
- “What the church needs today is not more machinery, not new organizations or more & novel methods, but men whom the Holy Ghost can use, men of prayer, men mighty in prayer. The Holy Ghost does not flow through methods, but thorugh men. He does not come on machinery, but on men. He does not anoint plans, but men, men of prayer.” (EM Bounds)
- “Pray without ceasing.” (1 Thessalonians 5:17)
Today, our focus is on corporate prayer – the prayer of the ChURch.
APPLICATION – Gathering for corporate prayer is essential to our individual spiritual growth & our growth as a chURch.
EXPLANATION: Acts 12:1-5
Let’s see what’s going on now w/ the early church. Getting better established. Drawing more attention from a lot of different people – some who are responding to the ongoing preaching of the Gospel by giving their lives to Christ & becoming a part of the Church, & some who are responding to the ongoing preaching of the Gospel by arresting & persecuting those who are proclaiming the Gospel.
Obvious that prayer – specifically corporate prayer – was a vital component of the early church’s life & health, even their survival as persecution got more widespread & more intense. When you see your leaders arrested, jailed, beaten, stoned, & executed (Stephen – Acts 7; James – Acts 12:2), you realize that you better be praying.
2 specific periods of persecution of the early church:
- Part 1 – Acts 8:1-4 – Saul persecuting the church from religious hierarchy
- Part 2 – Acts 12 – Political persecution led by King Herod – 1st time church experienced political persecution. This King Herod was the grandson of Herod the Great & is known as “the devil’s point man” in Jerusalem (Steven Ger). Might remember that Herod the Great was king when Jesus was born & had all the baby boys killed to try & kill Jesus.
Verse 1 gives us a pretty clear picture of the kind of man Herod was. He “laid violent hands on some who belonged to the Church.” He was very intentional about bringing harm & injury to the members of the Church. And as at other times, this was immediately following a time of strong ministry when the Church at Antioch was working hard to get ready to take care of other believers as a severe famine was coming (Acts 11:27-30).
Then Herod killed James & imprisoned Peter. Serious times for the Church! But serious times call for serious prayer! And that’s exactly what the CHURCH was doing – praying earnestly – continuously for Peter.
The early church believed in the importance of corporate prayer. Throughout the book of Acts, there are at least 10 different references to a group of believers or the entire church coming together to prayer.
WHY SHOULD THE CHURCH PRAY? – Simple answer: B/c we need to! There’s a tremendous need for the church to pray. We are powerless, clueless, directionless without prayer. We are limited to our feeble human efforts apart from prayer. The church should pray b/c we have to pray!
UNITY – We should pray b/c it brings unity to the Body. It’s hard to stay embittered or out of fellowship w/ another brother or sister in Christ when you are praying together w/ that person. Prayer breaks walls down, reveals needs, reminds us that we need one another, & that we have the same Savior, Jesus Christ.
POWER – We should pray b/c it brings the power of God on His work.
- Acts 2:42-43 – After the Church prayed, a deep sense of awe came upon everyone around them b/c they saw the power of God at work.
- Acts 4:31 – After the Church prayed, they shared the Gospel boldly b/c they had the power of the HS in them.
- Acts 12:5 – Church prayed – Angel showed up & set Peter free – Only the power of God could do that.
If we want the manifest power of God to be evident in our lives & in this Church, we must pray! If we want the power of God to be able to defeat Satan, we must pray! If we want the power of God to save those who are lost, set people free from addictions, break strongholds in lives & families & our community, heal sicknesses, diseases, marriages that are in trouble, families that are in despair, we must pray!
OBEDIENCE – We should pray b/c we are commanded to pray. Jesus said, “My house will be called a house of prayer” (Matthew 21:13). Jesus told His disciples that they should always pray & never give up (Luke 18:1). Philippians 4:6 tells us to not worry about anything but pray about everything.
The Church should pray out of obedience b/c we are told to pray, but we also pray so that we will live obedient lives. If we are living in disobedience, the HS will not enable us to pray b/c God will not hear us.
- Psalm 66:18 – “If I had harbored sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened to me.” (NET)
- Isaiah 59:2 – “It’s your sins that have cut you off from God. Because of your sins, he has turned away and will not listen anymore.” (NLT)
Fred Wolfe: “Feeble praying comes from feeble lives. There can be no effective prayer life w/ a defective spiritual life.”
HOW SHOULD THE CHURCH PRAY?
CONTINUOUSLY – V. 5 – “earnest” – “continuous”
The Church should pray A LOT! Our goal is to be a praying church, not just a church that prays. Prayer should permeate every nook & cranny of every ministry…Life Group…Bible study…deacons meeting…committee’s work…mission trip/project…worship service…choir or band practice…every building – present & future.
- Would love for some of you to start coming early on Sunday AM & prayer walk the building. Or come during week.
- “Stop & Pray” for new buildings
FERVENTLY – James 5:16 – “The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous person accomplishes much.”
“fervent” – “having or showing great intensity of spirit, feeling, enthusiasm.” Also means, “hot, burning, glowing.” Everywhere you look, you see fervent people – fervent about favorite sports team, favorite hobby or activity, family, work.
But what about fervent pray-ers? What about a church that is fervent about praying? I want our church’s prayer life to be “hot, burning, glowing!” THAT’S the kind of prayer that moves the heart & the hand of God!
TRUSTINGLY – When we pray, we have to believe!
- Matthew 21:22 – “…if you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”
We’ve got to believe that when we pray, lives are changed…people are saved…people are healed…grieving people are comforted…prodigals come home…addictions are broken…churches are started, strengthened, set on fire for the Gospel!
WHEN SHOULD THE CHURCH PRAY?
SET TIMES – The Church has always had specific times set aside to come together for prayer. Sadly, it’s usually the least attended activity in most churches.
- REFRESH – SPECIAL – SPIRIT-FILLED – “My favorite time of week”
- Begin incorporating more intentional times of prayer into our Sunday worship gatherings
TIMES OF NEED – Urgent, specific needs – Unexpected trouble or tragedy – These times drive us to our knees & drive us to each other.
RIGHT NOW!
