Be Ye Doers. . . Of The Word!

Timothy had many instructions from Paul for teaching the saints in many places. In 1 Timothy 2:1 Paul wrote, "I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men." "Intercessions" means going to God in behalf of others. If we pray for others as the Bible teaches us to do, we will have much to pray about, as we shall see.

I. There are Many People to Pray For.

First of all, we should pray for lost people. Paul did, he wrote, "Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved." (Romans 1:10) When we add this field to our praying, don't we have a lot to pray for? All of us have numerous friends, neighbors, relatives, work associates, new acquaintances, and backsliders whom we know. All of these need Christ. All need salvation. All need to know God. What can we do besides talk to them? Besides preach to them? We can pray for them, and we need to. Since great things come to pass in answer to prayer, we can be sure that something will take place that will open the door to some of them. Pray, and you will see.

Then there are fellow-saints to pray for. Listen to Ephesians 6:18, "Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints." "For all saints!" That encompasses a lot of people. There are the local saints with whom we gather for public worship. How often do we pray for each of them by families and by individuals? Then there are saints elsewhere whom you know: saints in neighboring towns, saints who have moved elsewhere, saints whom you have met at rallies, saints we have met in traveling, etc. And you may have some relatives who are Christians. Some of the saints are young people, and you know they need our prayers, growing up in this age. Some are older people nearing the end of the way. They need our prayers for finishing their courses. Then there are middle-age adults who have the responsibility of their families and the church. Let us pray for them.

In the opening verses of Paul's epistles he has taught us to pray for congregations elsewhere. He wrote the Colossian church, "We give thanks to God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you." (Colossians 1:3) To the church at Thessalonica, "We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers." (1 Thessalonians 1:2) And to the church at Phillipi, "I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy." (Philippians 1:3-4) Besides your home congregation, how about other congregations of the Lord's people in your area? Have you been praying for other congregations in your state? In other states? In other parts of the world? It is wonderful to know of works elsewhere. We should thank God for them, and we should pray for their spiritual welfare, for them to maintain their stand for Christ, that souls will be added there, and that the work will go forward.

How about praying for the preachers you know? Those who preach to you and those who preach elsewhere. As great a Christian and as great a preacher as Paul was, he sought the prayers of God's people. Listen, "Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may have free course, and be glorified, even as it is with you; and that we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men: for all men have not faith" (2 Thessalonians 3:1-2); "Withal praying also for us, that God would open a door of utterance, to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I am also in bonds: that I may make it manifest, as I ought to speak" (Colossians 4:3-4); pray "for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in bonds; that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak." (Ephesians 6:19- 20) Preachers are human. They live in the same world you do. They face the same temptations. Some would be better Christians if you prayed for them. Some would have more courage to preach the Word with needed boldness and strength. All of them could do a greater work with more prayers prayed for them. When you have known some preacher who gave up the ministry, did you even stop to consider whether you had really ever prayed for him?

And don't you remember what Jesus said, "The harvest truly is plenteous, but the laborers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that He will send forth laborers into His harvest."? (Matthew 9:37-38) The same is true today. Oh, the need for more laborers! How can this situation be remedied? Prayer will help. Pray for laborers in general to be multiplied, and then if you know somebody who ought to be making a decision in this way, pray for that one in particular.

Do you pray for your loved ones as you should? Listen to what it says about Job and his children: "His sons went and feasted in their houses, every one his day; and sent and called for their three sisters to eat and to drink with them. And it was so, when the days of their feasting were gone about, that Job sent and sanctified them, and rose up early in the morning, and offered burnt-offerings according to the number of them all: for Job said, "It may be that my sons have sinned, and cursed God in their hearts. Thus did Job continually." (Job 1:4-5) What an example of concern for his children! And shouldn't we have that same concern for each of our loved ones — our parents, our brothers and sisters, our children, our grandparents, our aunts and uncles, and our cousins? Don't leave your loved ones out of your prayers!

1 Timothy 2:2 says we should also pray for rulers and those who are in governmental authority. Frankly it is more common to hear complaining about rulers than prayers for them. Complaining doesn't do much good, and it has no Biblical promise connected with it, but prayer will do good, and it does have a Biblical promise. God is greater than rulers (ask Nebuchadnezzar), and He has overpowered them at times. Let us pray, then, more often for those charged with governing our land.

You will remember that Jesus taught in the Sermon on the Mount even to pray for one's enemies (Matthew 5:43-44). Some say, "I'm praying for them all right; I'm praying they will repent." Well, that is good, but that is not the context of Jesus' Sermon on the Mount material. Listen to it, "Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you." (Matthew 5:44) Have you prayed this way for them? This is the way Jesus prayed on the cross: "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do." (Luke 23:34) And Stephen concerning those stoning him: "Lord, lay not this sin to their charge." (Acts 7:60)

II. Reflections on Intercessory Prayer.

The above is quite an array of individuals for whom we are to pray. Obviously we do not spend enough time in prayer. We probably don't pray for all for whom we should pray, and we probably don't pray often enough for them. What do you think?

We are taught to pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17) and to continue in prayer (Colossians 4:2). On one occasion Jesus prayed all night (Luke 6:12). After feeding the 5,000 Hew spent about three-fourths of the night in prayer (Matthew 14:23-25). Daniel's prayer life included three sessions daily (Daniel 6:10). And the apostles spent enough time in prayer, along with their preaching that to minister to the neglected widows in the daily ministration would have robbed them of needed prayer and preaching time. They said, "We will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the Word." (Acts 6:3-4) A full ministry of intercessory praying will help us fulfill a life of prayer such as we have been studying about in the Bible.

Are you aware that Jesus Himself makes intercession for us? Hebrews 7:25 says, "He ever liveth to make intersession" for us. When we sin, 1 John 2:1 says He is our Advocate with the Father. He pleads our case before God. Say, do you want Jesus to quit interceding for you? Do you want Him to neglect interceding? Do you want Him to forget to intercede? Then we should not quit praying for others. We should not neglect it. We should not forget to intercede for people.

Intercessory praying keeps us from being concerned only with ourselves. A Christian is unselfish. Philippians 2:4 says, "Look not every man on his own things, but every man on the things of others." The NIV gives for that verse, "Look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others." This we do when we not only pray for ourselves but for others. Here is something we can do for others away from us, for people we know and even for those we don't know.

Truly intercessory praying is a manifestation of our love for other people, and it is a manifestation of our faith in God's promises to answer prayer.

Our title speaks of intercessory praying as a "ministry." It is. It is something we should do regularly and responsibly. Surely such praying will develop a real prayer life in us — something some have never had, something that will take time and thought, but time and thought spent with God. Will you start doing such today and continue thereafter as long as you live, adding more and more people to your "prayer list" as time rolls on? Your life will be enriched — and so will theirs!

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