Pray Always!
Ephesians 6:18-24
Focus: Paul calls Christians to utilize the most powerful ‘weapon’ they possess: prayer . . . ALWAYS!
Function: To encourage Christians to re-discover the power of prayer in their lives.
The War
Eph 6:12-17
12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world
and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
The weapons of war . . .
13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have
done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in
place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the
shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the
Spirit, which is the word of God. (NIV)
Finally, the ultimate weapon . . .
18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all
the saints. (NIV)
History records that on August 6, 1945 after four long years of war with the Axis of evil and after years of research and development which took place not too far from here, President Harry S. Truman gave the order. United States troops on board
the B-29 plane, the Enola Gay, dropped the Atomic Bomb, nicknamed “Little Boy”, on Hiroshima, Japan. One minute after being dropped, the bomb exploded into a fireball with a magnitude of which had never been seen before! That and the bomb dropped
on Nagasaki three days later brought a clear and decisive end to years of death and destruction during the second world war.
Today in our current war in Iraq, I’ve heard a lot of talk about the M.O.A.B.- the Massive Ordnance Air Burst Bomb. It’s the most powerful conventional (non-nuclear) bomb ever developed and its being used right now in Iraq by Allied forces.
Sometimes in war, the situation calls for the most powerful weapon at your disposal. In this battle against the spiritual forces of evil . . . in this battle for the souls of men and women- the most powerful weapon at our disposal, SADLY, is often the weapon we pull out last . . . Prayer.
In the text that ______ just read to us, let’s notice Paul’s final prayer requests of the Ephesians.
1. Notice, Paul calls on Christians to pray ALWAYS!/ in EVERY SEASON!
Though Paul saves it for last in this list- I believe he does so because it is the MOST IMPORTANT WEAPON of battle! Not that it should be used as the last resort, or when all else fails! No! He says that Christians are to pray ON ALL OCCASIONS! And
to ALWAYS KEEP ON PRAYING! He had told the church at Thessolonica to ‘pray without ceasing!’ (1 Thess. 5:17). Why?
This is the foundational weapon of war!
Folks, to use the language I used last week, there’s a war on! It’s a serious war against a serious enemy, but we have a secret weapon at our disposal! Like Special Operative troops I’ve read about. They aim their sophisticated lasers at specific locales
and call down laser-guided missiles from fighter jets overhead to destroy specific targets! That’s how prayer works. In prayer,we can call down power from on high and focus it in on a specific target! And it makes a difference!
But, Paul is calling for more than specific prayers . . . he’s calling for a lifestyle of prayer! While there are certainly times which
we are to go into our prayer closets and spend specific and pointed quiet time with God; this is a call to see all of life as communion with God. I DO think that we should see prayer as a kind of ‘spiritual breathing’, something we do naturally, almost without thinking about it.
2. Notice, too, Paul calls on Christians to pray IN THE SPIRIT.
What does it mean to pray, ‘in the Spirit’? Is this different from ‘just praying?’ According to a recent survey almost 90% of Americans regularly ‘pray’ in some regard. But just because one says he is praying, does that really mean that he is truly speaking to God?
To pray ‘in the Spirit’ is to pray ‘under the influence of the Spirit.’ Back in 5:18 Paul had exhorted his readers ‘not to get drunk on
much wind, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.’ Christians are to live their lives under the influence of the
Spirit, NOT anything or anyone else!
This is a call for Christians to be guided and led by the Holy Spirit of God in their prayers! That their prayers & requests are not just some rote prayers memorized since youth or some ‘wish list’; “God, please could you give me this, or that, and by the way . . .” NO! Our prayer is directed by the Holy
Spirit! How? How does this work? I’m not exactly sure, but I think Rom. 8:26,27 helps us out in understanding this...
26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for
us with groans that words cannot express. 27 And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit
intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will. (NIV)
The Spirit intercedes for us in prayer. When we don’t know what to say- the Spirit does. When we just can’t find the words- the
Spirit does. When our souls are hurting and we don’t know why or what to ask- the Spirit does.
3. Notice WHO Christians are to pray FOR.
“For all the saints.” Christians are to pray for one another. Christians are to pray for the church.
Is this church on your prayer list? I’ve never been real disciplined about prayer– I always found time to pray, but didn’t have to discipline myself like I do these days. I’ve started a list of prayer needs to help me remember what and who I need to pray about. Have you done this? And I need to be reminded that the church should be high up there on my list! We need to be in prayer over our Elders & leaders. We need to be in prayer over our members– especially those hurting or unable to be with us.
We need to be in prayer over the ministry of this church; what we’re trying to do for God. I’m thankful that our Capital Stewardship team has made prayer a high priority for our “Growing in Love for God’s Glory” campaign. I don’t know about
you, but I’ve been challenged by the prayers offered in regards to that campaign that we not only grow in the grace of giving, but also in our relationship to God. Folks, that is done through Prayer! ___________ is going to come now and lead us in a special
prayer over the ministry of this church and the incredible work God is doing here. . .
{Special Prayer}
4. Finally, Paul calls on the Christians there at Ephesus to pray for him.
I can understand that! Paul’s in quite a circumstance! Remember back in 3:1, he’s told us that he’s a “prisoner of Christ
Jesus for the sake of you, Gentiles” and we noted that while he languishes in a Roman prison cell, he doesn’t consider himself a prisoner of Rome or of Caesar, but of Christ! It is for the sake of Christ and spreading the good news of Christ that he’s been thrown in jail! But, he doesn’t pray for what I’d expect him to pray.. The images of our American POWs in Iraq are
still fresh on all of our minds. I cringe to think about what some of them have been going through these last few days. News channels have interviewed former POWs and their tales are gruesome and horrifying! I know that if I was in that circumstance
I’d be praying for release! I’d be praying for rescue! I’d be praying for protection, at least! I don’t know how that situation compares to what Paul was dealing with, but I think its worth noting that the prayers he requested were for NONE of those
things.
Eph 6:19-20
19 Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the
gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should. (NIV)
Paul’s request was for courage so that he might fearlessly continue preaching the gospel! Isn’t that amazing? Paul is languishing in a prison cell as a direct result of his preaching the gospel and all he can think about is preaching the gospel. He
doesn’t ask for prayers of protection or prayers of comfort or prayers for release, but prayers for the courage to stand firm and continue preaching the good news!
That’s encouraging! How committed are WE to that task? What if we found ourselves imprisoned for our beliefs? Would we still proclaim the good news? What if we found ourselves at the wrong end of a revolver? Would we still proclaim the good news? What if we found ourselves beaten & tortured for the sake of Christ? Would we still proclaim the good news?
Well, we catch a glimpse of the 1st century world in which Paul lived in his final greetings.
21 Tychicus, the dear brother and faithful servant in the Lord, will tell you everything, so that you also may know how I am and what I am
doing. 22 I am sending him to you for this very purpose, that you may know how we are, and that he may encourage you. 23 Peace to the brothers, and love with faith from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 24 Grace to all who love our Lord Jesus
Christ with an undying love. (NIV)
Even the Apostle Paul needed friends. Tychicus is mentioned first in Acts as a friend of Paul’s and then shows up again in four of Paul’s letters. Perhaps he is the courier for this letter, hand-delivering it to the church at Ephesus. Paul wants him to convey
personally to them how he is doing and to encourage them. Again, even in prison, Paul’s concern isn’t for himself, but how he might encourage others.
It’s a typical final greeting for Paul. ‘Peace’ literally ‘shalom’-- Paul wishes them the fullest blessings of life & ‘Grace’ – to all who love Jesus “with an undying love.”
How would you describe your prayer life?
flourishing or floundering? always or almost never?
Constant or erratic?
Your car is hurtling on the rain slick road sideways toward the oncoming car at 50 mph! What do you do? You pray! But what do you do when the weather is nice and the drive is peaceful?
The doctor comes into your exam room with the test results and a worried frown on his face. What do you do? You pray! But what do you do when you’re sitting at your desk at work involved in the mundane everyday responsibilities of your job?
You’re in the delivery room and the doctor looks at you and says, “It’s a boy!” or “It’s a girl!” What do you do? You thank God! But what do you do when the diaper has to be changed or the little booger has woken you up in the middle of the night?
I believe that so goes your prayer-life, so goes your relationship with God. How’s yours?
We have some wonderful opportunities coming up to deepen & strengthen your prayer life and I’d encourage you to take advantage of them.
My class- “Lord, teach us to pray” on Wed. nights.
Others you’ll be hearing more about in the weeks to come.
This is a call to pray . . . to pray powerfully . . . to pray specifically and to pray constantly! Not just when the chips are down; not just when all else fails; not just when you don’t have anywhere else to turn . . . but pray always/ in every season. God is there listening . . . he has said that he will never leave us nor forsake us!
My prayer today is that if you don’t know Christ, you won’t leave here without finding out more about him.
And that if you are in need of prayer, that you’d let that be known so that your brothers & sisters in Christ can be an encouragement to you through their prayers. Won’t you, during the singing of this next invitation song?
