A Church that is a House of Prayer

Acts 6:4. We will devote ourselves to prayer. . .

We will devote ourselves to prayer. That is a picture of the apostolic ministry. It was a praying ministry – a ministry that gave themselves continually to prayer, or, they were continually devoting themselves to . . . prayer. (Acts 2:42)

They had a praying church and a praying ministry! Ah, such a church and such a ministry can achieve anything that ought to be achieved. It will go steadily on beating down all opposition, surmounting every obstacle, and conquering every foe – just as much today as it did in the days of the apostles.

There is nothing else in which the church of today and the ministry of today, or, to be more clear, in which you and I, have departed more notably and more lamentably from apostolic precedent than in this matter of prayer.

We do not live in a praying age. A very considerable portion of the membership of our evangelical churches today do not believe even theoretically in prayer; that is, they do not believe in prayer as bringing anything to pass that would not have come to pass even if they had not prayed.

They believe in prayer as having a beneficial reflex influence; that is, they view prayer as benefiting the person who prays – a “prayer changes me” thing instead of a “prayer changes things” mentality.  We lost the “Shaping Your World through Prayer” faith.  The mentality is, as for prayer bringing anything to pass that would not have come to pass if we had not prayed, they do not believe in it.

It is an age of human organization, machinery, ambition, and accomplishment, which often leads to a lack of true achievement in God’s work.

The current state of the church reflects an unprecedented level of organization and efficiency, with incredible machinery in place, yet sadly lacking in power. Instead of addressing our failures by turning to God and seeking His strength, we tend to seek solutions in new organizational structures or additional mechanisms. However, what we truly need is not more organizational frameworks or machinery, but what the prophet Ezekiel saw – the presence of the Spirit of the living God within the wheels.  This speaks to the  divine existing power we need to move things forward.

Prayer has as much power today, when men and women have made themselves a house fo prayer and meeting the conditions of prevailing prayer, as it ever has had.

God has not changed. His ear is just as quick to hear the voice of real prayer as it has always been, and His hand is just as long and strong to save as it ever was.

Behold, the Lord’s hand is not so short that it cannot save; nor is His ear so dull that it cannot hear. But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden His face from you so that He does not hear (Isaiah 59:1-2).

Prayer is the key that unlocks all the storehouses of God’s infinite grace and power. All that God is, and all that God has, is at the disposal of prayer; but we must use the key.

Prayer can do anything that God can do, and since God can do anything, prayer is omnipotent.

No one can stand against the person who knows how to pray, who meets all the conditions of prevailing.