Concluding our series on ‘Living in Victory’, we see the final key to overcoming everything that comes against us in life. Here Paul speaks about prayer. Prayer is so powerful and important that Paul includes it in his teaching in Ephesians 6 about how we can win in every battle we face. As the great evangelist, John Wesley said: “Prayer is where the action is.”
Immediately after admonishing the Ephesians to take up the sword of the Spirit, Paul wastes no time in mentioning the final weapon (Ephesians 6:18-19).
Jesus is the ultimate example of a prayer warrior. During His time on earth, He lived a life of prayer. He prayed to do the will of His father so that God’s glory could be demonstrated through His life. He never ministered without first seeking His father in prayer. His power was prayer. The battles were won in prayer. And we read of so many miracles and of how Jesus’ ministry developed through prayer.
His life of prayer did not stop with His death. In Hebrews 7:24 we read “but because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood.” The role of the priests in the Bible was to intercede for people, but of course they could only do that whilst alive on earth, after which their ministry ended. Jesus is the eternal, forever high priest who continues His priestly ministry of intercession in Heaven. It is amazing to think that since He ascended to heaven, Jesus has been interceding on our behalf for the perfect will of the Father to be done.
Let us look more closely at what Paul teaches us about prayer in this specific context of prayer as a weapon.
1. Pray at all times (James 5:13; 1 Thessalonians 15:16-18; )
2. Pray in the Spirit (Romans 8:26; Ephesians 6:12)
3. Pray in different ways (Philippians 4:6)
4. Pray for people (Esther 4:17)
Apply
Paul says here “pray in the Spirit on all occasions...” No matter what you are going through, pray! There is nothing too big or too small to discuss with the Lord (James 5:13; 1 Thessalonians 15:16-18). Through the sacrifice of His Son Jesus, God removed the blockage of sin that was between man and God, opening the way for us to live in the presence of God. Praying on all occasions means continually welcoming His presence in our lives, confident that we will be heard by our Father God as we pray in all circumstances because the barrier has been removed.
The passage also says how we should “pray in the Spirit” The Holy Spirit lives in us and we should not only walk and live with the Holy Spirit’s guidance; we should also pray with the help of the Holy Spirit. A person truly dependent on the Holy Spirit can pray in the Spirit (Romans 8:26). We need the Holy Spirit. We are all called to be prayer warriors. We cannot fight our own battles; we instead fight in the Spirit. We win in the spiritual realm and then we see change manifested on earth. When we understand this, we will see many breakthroughs (Ephesians 6:12).
In this passage, Paul encourages us to pray “with all kinds of prayers and requests.” Imagine a quiver full of arrows, ready to fight the enemy and to be victorious. Well there are different kinds of arrows we can draw from our quiver. In his book ‘Secrets of a Prayer Warrior’, Derek Prince outlines 12 distinct kinds of prayer. These are “praise, thanksgiving, worship, petition, intercession, supplication, command, commitment, dedication, persistence, blessing and cursing.” There are more but this gives us a good idea of the different kinds of prayers we can pray. Paul teaches on prayer all through his books (Philippians 4:6). Prayer can be personal. We can ask for the salvation of a family member, ask for a breakthrough in your finances, ask for wisdom. Or we can pray publicly in groups for the community or the church. We can pray in many different ways.
Finally, we must pray for people. a) You can pray for yourself and your family, for protection, provision and more of the Lord’s presence, and applying the blood of Jesus. For every need in our lives, the cross represents a great exchange. b) We can pray for the church, our towns, our cities, nations and for other nations, that God will extend His kingdom and that many lives will be touched. Esther in the Bible is an amazing example of someone who offered up prayers and interceded because she wanted to see her people, her nation’s future changes. It was not easy; a lot was at risk. But she knew that the power to overcome the evil intents of Hamman was to pray. Like Charles Spurgeon said, “Prayer is the forerunner of mercy. Turn to sacred history, and you will find that scarcely ever did a great mercy come to this world unheralded by supplication.” Even when we are weak, you can use the weapon of prayer (Esther 4:17). God can move in your home, in your workplace, your community and nation through your prayers. The future of a nation is in the hands of the people who pray. c) We must pray for our spiritual leaders. Paul goes on to say to ask for prayer for himself, that he will continue to minister. These are the people that God sets as the covering over our lives. We are to uphold their arms in prayer, so that they can continue the work of God. And if Paul could ask for prayer as a leader, we need to keep praying for our own leaders as well. This passage about prayer is a key that all of us can apply. Paul asks that God’s people pray for boldness and fearlessness. We can boldly approach God's throne and ask with big expectation in our hearts and with no condemnation, for we are heirs and coheirs with Christ. Let’s put these final verses into practice so we can truly Live in Victory!
