Let Us Pray – Part 33

“So truth fails, and he who departs from evil makes himself a prey. Then the Lord saw it, and it displeased Him that there was no justice. 16: He saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor; therefore His own arm brought salvation for Him; and His own righteousness, it sustained Him,” (Is 59:15,16).
God Was Appalled That There Was No Intercessor(Read James 5:13-18)

How Are We Like Elijah?
“Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. 17: Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months. 18: And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit,” (Jas 5:16-18).

5:16-18 The Christian’s most powerful resource is communion with God through prayer. The results are often greater than we thought were possible. Some people see prayer as a last resort to be tried when all else fails. This approach is backward. Prayer should come first. Because God’s power is infinitely greater than ours, it only makes sense to rely on it — especially because God encourages us to do so.

Pray for God to give you the mind to pray, the will to pray and the love to pray.
Prayer Blockers (Read Mat 6:1-14)

Three faults Jesus emphasised that we should guard against in prayer are (
• Hypocrisy (vv5-6)
• Meaningless repetition (vv7-8)
•Bitterness and resentment (vv14-15).

God will notreward people who use prayer to show off their ability to use words. Meaningless repetition occurs when people use tired overworked phrases that drop from their lips endlessly. If you won’t forgive, says Jesus, then there is no point in asking for forgiveness because you won’t receive it.
“Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord: 15: Looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled,” (Heb 12:15,16).

Heb 12:14: “Pursue peace with all people, and holiness.” Holiness is being separated from sin and being set apart for God; it is to be close to God, to be like Him, and to seek His presence, righteousness and fellowship with all our hearts. Above all things, holiness is God’s priority for His followers,” (Eph 4:21-24).

• Holiness was God’s purpose for His people when He planned their salvation in Christ (Eph 1:4).
• Holiness was Christ’s purpose for His people when He came to this earth (Mat 1:21; 1 Cor 1:2,30).
• Holiness was Christ’s purpose for His people when He gave Himself up for them on the cross (Eph 5:25-27).

•Email:[email protected]: Yetunde Mercy Olumide