Praying At All Times In The Spirit
Ephesians 6:18 Lexham English Bible
18 with all prayer and supplication praying at all times in the Spirit, and to this end being alert with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints,
The word prayer here means prayer, place of prayer. What a person prays; place of prayer.[1]. The word supplication here means entreaty, request, plea, prayer. Refers primarily to a petitionary prayer.[2] We are to bring all things to God in prayer. But Paul speaks of something very important here. He says praying at all times in The Spirit. What does it mean to pray in The Spirit?
When we look at 1 Corinthians 14:14-15 Paul writes 14 For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays but my mind is unproductive. 15 Therefore what should I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my mind. I will sing praise with my spirit, but I will also sing praise with my mind. Paul here makes a distinction between praying in The Spirit and praying with our mind or understanding. He also equates praying in The Spirit with speaking in tongues. For when we speak in tongues or pray in tongues it is The Holy Spirit who gives us utterance.
Paul also writes this in Romans 8:26 26 And likewise also, the Spirit helps us in our weakness, for we do not know how to pray as one ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with unexpressed groanings. The Holy Spirit understands our understanding and our human mind is limited. When we pray in our understanding, we pray according to what we know. But there are things taking place in the world that are far greater than our understanding. It is important to bring all things before the Lord in prayer. To pray in our understanding of things that we have on our heart that we know must be brought before the Lord.
But there is something deeper and supernatural that takes place when we begin to pray in The Spirit. We begin to pray forth things that are a mystery to us but things that are according to the perfect will of God. For the Holy Spirit knows the perfect will of God because He is God. When He gives us utterances, we are simply praying as The Holy Spirit leads. Praying in The Spirit is one of the most devastating resources and weapons we have against the kingdom of darkness.
Can every believer pray in The Spirit? I believe the answer is yes. I don’t believe praying in tongues is only for a select few in the body of Christ. I believe when people encounter what is known as Pentecost or the baptism of The Holy Spirit, that during that time they receive what is known as their prayer language.
Our prayer life is taken to a deeper place when we begin to incorporate praying in The Spirit daily. If this is something right now that you have not experienced, I would encourage you to begin to seek the Lord for it. There is nothing good that He will keep from us. If you don’t currently praying in the Spirit it doesn’t make you a second class Christian. It is a wonderful gift the Holy Spirit gives to us.
It is one of the most devastating things to the kingdom of darkness. For when we pray in The Spirit we pray forth the perfect will of God. We pray in the authority found in Jesus. It develops deep intimacy in our lives with The Holy Spirit. His voice and His leading become crystal clear. Once we experience it and begin to implement it, it changes everything.
The Lord tells us with all perseverance. The word perseverance means persistence — persistent determination[3]. There will be times when we feel like giving up. The enemy will lie to us and tell us our prayers are not accomplishing anything. But we must remain steadfast. We must hold to the promises of God’s word. Our faith is not built on our own thoughts or our emotions. It is built upon the truth of scripture.
We are called to pray for all the saints. The word saint means holy, set apart, consecrated, dedicated, saints. Refers to the quality of God who is transcendently distinctive, unique, majestic, perfect, and pure[4]. It is not speaking of those that the Catholic church has recognized as saints. It is speaking of born again believers all over the world. Though we may be separated by location. In Christ we are one because of His precious shed blood. We have brothers and sisters who are suffering daily and may we pray in our understanding and pray in the Spirit for their needs.
May our lives become a house of prayer. May we make it the priority and build our lives around it. May we not view prayer as a last resort, but may it be what we build everything on. God has given us an invitation daily with Him to come and spend time with Him in intimacy. The Holy Spirit desires that we would pray in the Spirit, using the authority of Christ we have and praying forth the perfect will of God. As we pray and seek His face, His will is accomplished in the earth.
Prayer
Father lead and guide me daily. Father I pray that you would deepen my prayer life. I pray for greater intimacy with you Holy Spirit. If I am not praying in the Spirit now, Holy Spirit I pray you would fill me and this would become a reality in my life. Teach me how to pray Holy Spirit. Help me in my weakness and unbelief. May my life be consecrated unto you every moment of every day.
[1] Daniel DeWitt Lowery, “Prayer,” ed. Douglas Mangum et al., Lexham Theological Wordbook, Lexham Bible Reference Series (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2014). [2] Daniel DeWitt Lowery, “Prayer,” ed. Douglas Mangum et al., Lexham Theological Wordbook, Lexham Bible Reference Series (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2014). [3] Rick Brannan, ed., Lexham Research Lexicon of the Greek New Testament, Lexham Research Lexicons (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2020). [4] Hon-Lee Kwok, “Holiness,” ed. Douglas Mangum et al., Lexham Theological Wordbook, Lexham Bible Reference Series (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2014).
Comments