QUESTION 20
Are
Intercessory Prayers Or Prayer Chains Necessary?
As we have seen earlier,
we are under a different, separate administration through the evangel of
the Uncircumcision. What may have been valid in another administration
may be out of keeping with ours. Anachronisms, fit for another time, another
place, they run out of sync with ours!
In the economy under the
evangel of the Circumcision, personal qualification through works of righteousness
put believers in good standing with God. So James could advise people who
were physically infirm to request the prayers for healing on their behalf.
Jas.5:14-16
Is anyone infirm among you? Let him call to him the elders of the ecclesia,
and let them pray over him,
rubbing him with olive oil [elaion] in the name of the Lord.
And the vow of faith will
be saving the faltering and the Lord will be rousing him up,
and, if he should have done
sins, it will be forgiven him.
Then confess sins to one
another and pray for one another, so that you may be healed.
The operative petition
of the just is availing much.
(The effectual fervent
prayer of a righteous man availeth much. - KJV)
(The prayer of a righteous
man is powerful and effective. - NIV)
Many who request for intercession
put their trust in the last part of this passage. They hope that someone
among those they turn to will be that righteous person and draw
the healing. Gone from their minds is that each one of us in the
body of Christ is righteous - because we are in Christ.
2Cor.5:21
For the One not knowing sin, He makes to be sin for our sakes
that we may be becoming
God's
righteousness in Him.
Rom.3:21-23
Yet now, apart from law, a righteousness of God is manifest
(being attested by the law
and the prophets),
yet a righteousness of God
through
Jesus Christ's faith,
for all, and on all
who are believing,
for there is no distinction,
for all sinned and are wanting of the glory of God.
1Cor.1:30
Yet you, of Him, are in Christ Jesus, Who became to us wisdom
from God,
besides righteousness
and holiness and deliverance,
Believers, together,
form the part which makes up the complement of Christ. In us God
sees Christ and Christ's righteousness. God will hear our personal
prayer in spite of our faults and weaknesses. We should not condone this
lack of confidence in God's declarations. Each of us is righteous
in Christ! We must not depend on the prayers of others, thereby surrendering
our privilege of a personal approach to our Father.
Rom.5:1,2
Being, then, justified by faith,
we may be having peace toward
God, through our Lord, Jesus Christ,
through Whom we have
the access also, by faith, into this grace in which we stand,
and we may be glorying in
expectation of the glory of God.
Eph.3:11,12
... Christ Jesus, our Lord;
in Whom we have boldness
and access with confidence, through His faith.--
This does not mean that we cannot
share our problems with others. If they are moved to pray for us, or if
we are moved to pray for them, it is evidence of the oneness in fellowship
and of caring for one another that should be characteristic of Christians.
Sharing is one thing; dependence on others for our lack of faith is quite
another.
Gal.6:2 Bear
one another's burdens, and thus fill up the law of Christ.
Gal.6:5
for each one shall be bearing his own load
People bring up the passage
in James, cited earlier, as authority for calling for intercessory prayer.
Is it not of interest to note that they will choose certain parts to follow
and conveniently ignore others? They will call on the elders and on whomever
else to plead their case. But, who hears of them rubbing the infirm with
olive oil? They prefer to play safe and consult doctors and specialists
and undergo all sorts of therapies and regimens.
If we really believe
that God hears our prayer we will know that we do not have to repeat our
request over and over again. Scripture advises 'perseverance in prayer'
(Eph.6:18-20). This means that we should not fall into a neglect
of prayer and into taking things for granted. When we pray for the message
of an evangelist to be well received in a certain area, we may again pray
for it to be as well accepted in another. But, it would be pointless to
pray over and over again for 'success' at the same meeting.
Of course, there are those
who will quote the passage in Luke for their position.
Lk.11:5-8
And He said to them, "Who of you will be having a friend
and will be going to him
at midnight and may be saying to him,
`Friend, let me use three
cakes of bread, since, in fact, a friend of mine
came along out of the road
to me, and I have nothing that I should be placing before him';
and he, inside, answering,
may be saying, `Do not afford me weariness;
already the door is locked,
and my little children with me are in bed;
I can not rise to give to
you'?
I am saying to you, even
if he will not rise to give to him because of his being his friend, surely
because
of his pestering, being roused, he will be giving him whatever he needs.
This passage, when taken out
of its contexts, does seem to teach this. But, really, does God give in
to pestering? Is He teaching His children to be a family of perennial pests?
And, what follows seems to say so, too.
Lk.11:9,10
"And I to you am saying, Request, and it shall be given to you.
Seek, and you shall find.
Knock, and it shall be opened to you.
For everyone who is requesting
is
obtaining and who is seeking is finding,
and to the one knocking
it shall be opened.
But, a hint of the true picture
is found in the following verses.
Lk.11:11-13
"Now of some father of you a son will be requesting bread.
No stone will he be handing
him!
Or a fish, also. Not, instead
of a fish, a serpent will he be handing him!
Or he will also be requesting
an egg. He will not be handing him a scorpion!
If you, then, being
inherently wicked, are aware how to give good gifts to your children,
how much rather will the
Father Who is out of heaven, be giving holy spirit
to those requesting Him!"
Note that the requests are for
essentials,
bread, and fish, and eggs - and holy spirit. Only if what we ask for is
truly
good, not what we just think is good for us will our good
Father grant it.
Jas.4:3
You are requesting and not obtaining,
because you are requesting
evilly,
that you should be spending it on your gratifications.
1Jn.5:14,15
And this is the boldness which we have toward Him,
that if we should be requesting
anything according to His will, He is hearing us.
And if ever we are aware
that He is hearing us, whatever we may be requesting,
we are aware that we have
the requests which we have requested from Him.
According to this, then, the
prerequisite for answered prayer, is to know God's will! This can
only be found through applying ourselves to a sound study of the Scriptures.
And, this has been the emphasis throughout this paper.
Rom.11:34
For, who knew the mind of the Lord? or, who became His adviser?
or, who gives to Him first,
and it will be repaid him?
seeing that out of Him
and through Him and for Him is all:
to Him be the glory for
the eons! Amen!
Isa.45:7
Former of light and Creator of darkness, Maker of good and Creator of evil.
I, Yahweh Elohim, made
all of these things.
Isa.46:10 Telling
from the beginning, the hereafter,
and from aforetime, what
has not yet been done.
Saying, `All My counsel
shall be confirmed, and all My desire will I do.'
Isa.46:11 …
Indeed, I speak! Indeed, I will bring it about! I formed. Indeed,
I will do it.
September 2001
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