PRAY FOR THE PRESIDENT AND AMERICA
I Timothy 2:1-4
I Timothy 2:1-4 "I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; for kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior; Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth."
INTRODUCTION: The Bible teaches that in the last days before Christ’s return our world would go topsy-turvy and become perilous. This is a perfect description of the time in which we are now living. It is during times like these that we need to become people of prayer – prayer warriors. We are to pray for our needs and the church’s needs but our prayers are to extend far beyond the walls of our church. The call to prayer for our leaders and our nation is clear from the pages of God’s Word.
I. WE ARE TO BE INTERCESSORS FOR ALL MEN.
A. “I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men.”
B. Four Kinds of Prayers that we are called to offer on behalf of others.
1. Supplications – focusing upon specific special deep and intense needs of others and carrying that need to God with a sense of urgency.
2. Prayers – set times or seasons of prayer when we pray for others in general
3. Intercessions – standing in the gap before God on behalf of others seeking God’s mercy and grace for others.
4. Thanksgiving – thanking God for hearing our prayers of faith in anticipation of what He is going to do in the life of others and gratitude for what He has done in the past.
C. Ezekiel 22:30 "And I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it: but I found none."
D. Karl Barth said, “To clasp hands in prayer is the beginning of an uprising against the disorder of the world.” [Prayer. Christianity Today, Vol. 34, no. 4]
II. WE ARE TO INTERCEDE IN PARTICULAR FOR THOSE IN AUTHORITY.
A. Not only are we to pray for all men in general but as our text says we are to pray specifically “for kings, and for all that are in authority” (I Timothy 2:2)
B. What is amazing is that when Paul instructed Timothy to teach the church to pray for kings and political leaders Nero was on the throne in Rome. Nero having burned Rome in 64 A.D. blamed Christian activists for the fire and had embarked on a campaign of brutal persecution against Christians. The thought of praying for them had to be difficult if not repugnant to some.
C. This means we are to pray for them
1. no matter how good or bad they are
2. no matter what political party they belong to (Democrat or Republican)
3. no matter whether they are conservative or liberal
4. no matter how moral or immoral they may be
5. no matter how just or unjust they might be
D. We should pray for those in authority because God put them there.
1. Those in authority are there by the will of God and will remove them as He sees fit to accomplish His ultimate plan.
2. Daniel 2:21 "And he changes the times and the seasons: he removes kings, and sets up kings: he gives wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding:"
3. Romans 13:1 "Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God."
E. We are to realize that the hearts of our leaders are in God’s hands.
1. Proverbs 21:1 "The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD, as the rivers of water: he turns it whither so ever he will."
2. Ezra 6:21-22 "… The children of Israel, which were come again out of captivity, and all such as had separated themselves unto them from the filthiness of the heathen of the land, to seek the LORD God of Israel, did eat, and kept the feast of unleavened bread seven days with joy. For the LORD had made them joyful, and turned the heart of the king of Assyria unto them, to strengthen their hands in the work of the house of God, the God of Israel."
III. WE NEED TO PRAY FOR OUR PRESIDENT.
A. George Washington (1732-1799) our first President said, “It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and the Bible.”
B. I have been driven many times to my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had nowhere else to go. My own wisdom, and that of all about me, seemed insufficient for the day. - Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865)
C. I Kings 3:7-9 "And now, O LORD my God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David my father: and I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in. And thy servant is in the midst of thy people which thou hast chosen, a great people, that cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude. Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people?"
D. Pray for our President that God will give him wisdom and discernment in every decision he makes. Pray that God will give the President all the appropriate knowledge needed to lead our nation by sound biblical principles.
E. Some are calling the current Iraqi situation the most serious risk to our national security since the Cuban Missile Crisis. Pray for the President as he leads our nation through this crisis.
F. Psalms 33:16 "There is NO king saved by the multitude of a host: a mighty man is not delivered by much strength."
IV. WE NEED TO PRAY FOR OUR COUNTRY, AMERICA.
A. Our nation was war-torn and weary in the midst of the Civil War, and victory in the long struggle was anything but certain when the President received a resolution asking him to declare a national day of prayer. Here is part of his response: "We have forgotten the gracious hand, which preserved us in peace, and multiplied and enriched and strengthened us," he wrote, "And have vainly imagined that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own. Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God that made us." With those words, President Abraham Lincoln called on all Americans to turn to God in prayer for a quick outcome to the Civil War. (copied from the Presidential Prayer Team)
B. II Chronicles 7:14 "If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land."
C. Prayer is political action. Prayer is social energy. Prayer is public good. Prayer shapes more of our nation’s life than is formed by legislation. That we have not collapsed into anarchy is due more to prayer than to the police.
D. Prayer is a sustained and intricate act of patriotism in the largest sense of that word--far more precise, loving, and preserving than any patriotism served up in slogans. That society continues to be livable and that hope continues to be resurgent are attributable to prayer far more than to business prosperity or a flourishing of the arts. The single most important action contributing to whatever health and strength there is in our land is prayer.
E. Proverbs 11:11 "By the blessing of the upright the city is exalted: but it is overthrown by the mouth of the wicked."
E. Any revitalization of faith in this country will have to start with prayer, in which we gain a sense of the living presence of God. (George Gallup Jr.)
F. Following America’s war for independence, the country went into a moral and spiritual tailspin. Alcoholism was a major problem as nearly 8% of the population could be classified as confirmed drunkards. Crime was on the rise. The churches were in decline. One Massachusetts minister reported that in 16 years not one young person had joined his church. John Marshall, Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court wrote that the church was too far gone to be revived." A survey of the Harvard student body found that not even one student claimed to be a believer. The influence of Christianity and the church was definitely on the wane. Then God intervened. He did it through a concert of prayer. Jonathan Edwards, inspired by a Scottish minister’s effort to rally that nation’s Christians to pray for revival, issued a little book entitled "An Humble Attempt to Promote Explicit Agreement and Visible Union of God’s People in Extraordinary Prayer for the Revival of Religion and the Advancement of Christ’s Kingdom on Earth." The spiritual awakening that swept Great Britain after John Wesley’s death also motivated another New England pastor to send out a plea for prayer. There developed a network of prayer meetings that involved churches all over the country. In 1795 they designated the first Tuesday of every quarter as a day of prayer. Soon revival broke out in pockets here and there. Then came the great camp meetings of the summer of 1800. That revival launched the missionary movement and played a big part in the abolition of slavery. By the middle of that century, however, things had gotten bad again. One man who was grieved by all the materialism and strife, called a prayer meeting in New York City. Only six showed up, but the following week there were 40. Within a few months a number of churches and public buildings in downtown New York were filled with people praying. It wasn’t long until a Chicago shoe salesman felt God’s call on his life and began a 40 year ministry that resulted in a million conversions. His name was D. L. Moody. It all started with prayer and was sustained by prayer. Then again in the early years of the current century, Christian people sensed a need for awakening and began to pray. One of them was a praying young man named Evan Roberts of Wales. One night he asked his pastor for permission to speak after a prayer meeting. Only 17 people heard his plea for confession and obedience, but they responded and within days people were flocking to that church from other towns. The great Welch revival was beginning and would eventually sweep over the rest of Britain as well as many European countries and others overseas. It began with prayer meetings and culminated in a great spiritual harvest.
Revival grows out of prayer, especially the "extraordinary prayer" Jonathan Edwards talked about. That’s what happens when people get up an hour early in the morning just to pray or skip their noon mean to spend the time in prayer. When we pray, God will send revival. [J. Edwin Orr, "A landslide of prayer" Decision, Jan 1992. Pages 29-30.]
V. PRAY FOR THE CONVERSION OF THE LOST.
A. I Timothy 2:4 "Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth."
B. Romans 10:1 "Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved."
C. Paul’s prayer for Israel was not focused on national survival or deliverance from Roman occupation but for his people to come to a personal saving knowledge of and relationship with Jesus Christ.
D. Christians need to pray two prayers “Lord send the Light to those lost in darkness” and “ Lord, let my Light shine in the darkness.”
E. Matthew 9:38 "Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth laborers into his harvest."
F. When you pray be prepared to be the answer to your prayer.
