Last time,
we considered the apostles’ inability to keep quiet regarding the message of
the Lord Jesus. I want to take a couple
of posts now to think through what happened next and what lessons we can draw
from it.
To review,
Peter and John were told by the Jewish council to lose all the Jesus talk. The apostles replied, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than
to God, you must judge, for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard”
(Act 4:19-20). The council let them go,
but threatened them. We can’t be sure
exactly what this threat was but it was enough to cause the apostles to go back
to their brothers and sisters and report it (4:24). Consider what happened next:
24
And when they heard it, they lifted their voices together to God and said,
"Sovereign Lord, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and
everything in them,
25 who through the
mouth of our father David, your servant, said by the Holy Spirit, "'Why
did the Gentiles rage, and the peoples plot in vain?
26 The kings of
the earth set themselves, and the rulers were gathered together, against the
Lord and against his Anointed'--
27 for truly in
this city there were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom
you anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the
peoples of Israel,
28 to do whatever
your hand and your plan had predestined to take place.
29 And now, Lord,
look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your
word with all boldness,
30 while you stretch
out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of
your holy servant Jesus."
31 And when they
had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they
were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God
with boldness (Act 4:24-31).
There is
so much to be gathered from this, but I want to just tackle one with this
post. We might take from this passage that
prayer is effective. Prayer is
powerful. The people prayed for boldness
(v29) and God delivered (v31).
Certainly,
prayer is powerful, but I’d prefer that we gather something a bit more specific
here: corporate prayer is
powerful. V24 reads, “when they heard it, they lifted their
voices together to God…” If they lifted their voices together and prayed, then it could mean
that somehow they all prayed simultaneously the same exact words as recorded
here in this passage, in some kind of synchronized autonomic vocalization. OR, perhaps they each prayed out loud in turn
and this text records in summary form the substance of what was prayed by all
in that meeting. I find the former
highly unlikely and the latter highly likely.
However it
happened, we must admit that it took place somewhat differently that it might
have today. I’m afraid that today many
Christians, not all, would hear such news and say something like, “we’ll
definitely pray for you,” with the obvious implication that each one would pray
privately and individually. This is so
different from what we see in Acts, not just in this passage but
elsewhere. In Acts 1:14, Luke tells us
of the very earliest days of the church, All
these with one accord were devoting themselves to prayer, together with the
women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers. When Peter was freed from prison by an angel
in Acts 12, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John, and found not only
that Mary was there praying for him, but “many
were gathered together and were praying.”
In 1 Timothy, Paul writes, First of all, then, I
urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for
all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that
we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way (1Ti
2:1-2). The following verses make it
clear that Paul is talking about corporate prayer specifically (1Ti 2:8-10). He takes for granted that corporate prayer is
the norm and here gives direction regarding what
to pray.
The Bible
indicates that corporate prayer is powerful.
Through corporate prayer the saints are: supported with power, filled
with the Spirit, and given boldness to speak the word in hostile circumstances
(Acts 4:23-31); the miraculous happens (Acts 12:6-17); the sick are healed (Jas5:13-18); and even pagan government officials can be saved (1 Tim 2:1-7). Unbelievable things happen when God’s people
pray together.
I’d
encourage you to talk to those who have been participating in our Wednesday
night prayer meetings. Last night I gave
a short testimony regarding corporate prayer and all agreed that they have
experienced the same thing. I’ll expand
that testimony a bit here. When I pray
privately by myself, I do enjoy great, blessed fellowship with the Lord. I can’t do without it. But there is something unique about praying
with other believers that I have found to be irreplaceable. When I hear other people lifting their voices
to the Lord for one another, for me, and for the lost, my soul wells up with a
great, “amen,” and frequently my eyes well up with tears. I find myself enjoying a deepness of fellowship
with the Lord in that setting that I do not experience on my own. This proves to me so much of what I’ve
listened to myself say from the pulpit over the years, all to the effect that we
need the church in order to enjoy God to the fullest.
Shelby and
I both expressed to one another in different ways last night how much we’re
being blessed by praying corporately with our church family. We’re growing in love for the saints and for
the Lord. There is a building sense of
unity and care for one another in this Wednesday night group as each week
passes. We’re also finding that our
private prayer lives are benefitting.
Praying together makes us want to pray more diligently in our
homes. Again, I would encourage you to
ask those who have come. I would also
ask you to consider making it a priority to join us. We pray each week that God would grow the
meeting numerically and that corporate prayer would come to be viewed by all as
a vital part of our life together at PBF.
Amazing things happen when God’s people pray together.
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