·
Unity
of believers
Jesus Christ illustrated this
point by saying; “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. "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. For where two or three
are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them" (Matthew
18:18-20).
·
Tenacity
Jesus illustrated this in a
parable when He said, “men always ought to pray and not lose heart saying:
"There was in a certain city a judge who did not fear God nor regard man. Now
there was a widow in that city; and she came to him, saying, 'get justice for
me from my adversary.' And he would not for a while; but afterward he said
within himself, 'Though I do not fear God nor regard man, yet because this
widow troubles me I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary
me.' "Then the Lord said, "Hear what the unjust judge said. And shall
God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears
long with them? I tell you that He will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless,
when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?" (Luke
18:1-8).
·
Persistence
Which is to ask something
repeatedly as illustrated by Jesus Christ who instructed His disciples saying;
“Which of you shall have a friend, and go to him at midnight and say to him,
'Friend, lend me three loaves; for a friend of mine has come to me on his
journey, and I have nothing to set before him'; and he will answer from within
and say, 'Do not trouble me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me
in bed; I cannot rise and give to you'? I say to you, though he will not rise
and give to him because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he
will rise and give him as many as he needs. (Luke 11: 5-8).
·
Intensity
This was also illustrated by
Jesus Christ who taught His disciples saying; “Ask and it will be given to you;
seek, and you will find; knock and it will be opened to you: For everyone who
asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.
Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a
stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? If you then, being
evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your
Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!” (Matthew
7: 7-11).
·
Confident
expectation
This was ascertained by Jesus
Christ who again taught His disciples saying; “For assuredly, I say to you, whoever
says to this mountain, 'Be removed and be cast into the sea,' and does not
doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he
will have whatever he says. Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask
when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them” (Mark
11:23-24).
·
Without
many words
Jesus Christ instructed His
disciples saying; “And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For
they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets,
that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.
But you, when you pray, go into
your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the
secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. And
when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think
that they will be heard for their many words. "Therefore do not be like
them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him” (Matthew
6:5-8).
·
Unceasingly
The Apostle Paul’s admonition to
the saints is to, “pray without ceasing.” The saints are admonished to, “Be
anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with
thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God,
which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through
Christ Jesus” (1 Thessalonians 5:17; Philippians 4: 6-7).
Prayer therefore, is the second of the four integral parts of the covenant by sacrifice which the saints have covenanted to offer to the Lord. It is the means of communication with God and making request of God whether it is through adoration, confession, supplication, intercession or thanksgiving it is a covenanted sacrifice for all saints without ceasing.
https://www.amazon.com/author/luciusjoseph
To be continued
With brotherly love
Lucius Joseph
No comments:
Post a Comment