Pray for One Another
“…pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” (James 5:16b-d)
Oswald Chambers in My Utmost for His Highest, states that “Prayer does not equip us for greater works— prayer is the greater work.” How do you see prayer and how it is impacting your life and others?
Are you noticing that as we go through these “one anothers” that while the ultimate “one another” is to “Love one another” there are many different expressions of this love found in the way we treat and care for each other…and in what we avoid so that we do not treat each other wrongly.
As with all the “one anothers” this requires discipline even as we are in Christ to be disciplined in The Holy Spirit…the new man or woman…and move away from walking in the flesh…old man or woman apart from Christ. Discipline…that’s why it’s called discipleship and we are to be disciples and make disciples of Christ. I (we) can’t do that in our own strength, only in His!
With that said, we find James wrapping up his “one anothers” with a very powerful one found in the same text as our previous command to “confess our sins to one another.” He continues in James 5:16 with “…Pray for each other.” He doesn’t stop there but finishes with this encouraging truth…”the prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” That’s awesome but remember we are only made righteous in Christ and our power is only found in Him and His Holy Spirit.
Jesus taught us to go so far as to even love our enemies and pray for those who would persecute and harm us (Matthew 5:44). That takes a love much greater than the emotionally driven love that most people, even those in our churches, define love by. It’s a deliberate, disciplined choice…not a feeling. This kind of praying for others with effective power and results is only done in the discipline of love and I (we) only have that as I (we) accept Christ as our Savior and Lord and then by the indwelling power of The Holy Spirit!
How are you doing when it comes to praying for others? How about praying for your enemies? What about humbling yourself to ask for prayer for yourself?
We all must admit that apart from Christ our prayers are not powerful and effective. Only as we walk in the discipline of The Holy Spirit, His Word and Love can we truly pray for others, including our enemies and those that would seek to harm us.
Food for Thought…I pray that we know Christ more so and that we can pray in earnest according to Your Word, Spirit and power in love for all others that they may know and desire to come to Him as Savior and Lord. May we also pray in this powerful faith for others and, as we confess our own sins, see the powerful moving of Your Spirit and healing and may God be glorified in all things.
Action Steps…
- Spend time with God and in His Word, prayer and listening every day…begin with the Scriptures in this message.
- Ask The Holy Spirit to teach you.
- Take a personal inventory of your prayer life…is it preceded by confession that places you before His Throne?
- What fruit are you seeing in your prayer life? What, if anything, needs to change?
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Love and Lordship Prayer Focus Heavenly Father, thank You for hearing all my prayers and pleas but help me to understand that when confession precedes my prayers, my prayers are more powerful and effective. Help me to follow through so my prayers accomplish all that you desire. In Jesus Name. Amen.