PRAYING FOR THE PEOPLE OF GOD -- Tomorrow:
"For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God; Strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness." (Colossians 1:9-11, KJV)
Devotion 6 of 32
" . . . do not cease to pray for you."
The continuance of Paul's prayers was not owing to a declining condition among the Colossian brethren. Rather, it was because their singular devotion to Christ and unfeigned love of the brethren had been duly noted by "the prince of the power of the air." They were in the midst of a battle of gargantuan proportions. A few words on this matter will confirm that this was the case.
SATAN'S ACTIVITY
Satan is solidly aligned against all who are in Christ Jesus. He is depicted as a fierce and determined adversary. Having been expelled from the courts of heaven, he has come down to earth "having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time" (Rev 12:12). The anger of the devil is focused on the people of God. With cunning wit and intention he "makes war" with those "who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus" (Rev 12:17). He is stalking those who are in Christ Jesus, "seeking whom he may devour" (1 Pet 5:8-9). Those are the only people who pose any threat to his burgeoning empire. Satan's aggression requires fervent and consistent prayer for the saints.
Although the ultimate outcome of this war has been determined, those who will actually participate in the victory are being determined in the heat of the battle. Their victory is not automatic. It requires both their own activity, and the help of the other members of the body. This is the manner of spiritual life. It is how God has arranged the "good fight of faith" (1 Tim 6:12), in order that He might receive proper glory and honor.
PRINCIPALITIES AND POWERS
The life of faith also involves grappling with a high order of spiritual foes. Whether the saints are aware of it or not, they are striving against forces that are vastly superior to the most advanced form of human intellect and power. They are described in the sixth chapter of Effusions. "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places" (Eph 6:12). There simply is no way to effectually resist these enemies with natural resources.
The only way to survive this conflict is to put on "the whole armor of God." Protection of every part of our being, from head to foot, is necessary. We must be versatile in handling both sword and shield, else we will be overcome (Eph 6:10-18). This circumstance requires our prayers for one another. In fact, that is part of our armor: "Praying ALWAYS with ALL prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with ALL perseverance and supplication for ALL saints" (Eph 6:18).
ALL THAT IS IN THE WORLD
We are being saved in the very midst of the enemy's camp – in a hostile realm populated with all manner of adversaries. It is true that we also occupy the "heavenly places," where we have been placed by God Himself (Eph 2:6). That holy domain, however, is for our spirits. Our bodies are not there. They are in the world. We not only live with a consciousness of, and certain involvements with, the heavenly places, but we do so in the world as well. This constitutes a certain liability that demands sobriety and vigilance.
It is written, "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever" (1 John 2:15-17). Any person that fails to take that word seriously will inevitably under the assault of the wicked one.
The Spirit tells us of the present condition of things, the liabilities that are about us, and the sure outcome of it all. If the world did not have a strong drawing power, we would not be told to refrain from loving it. It pulls at our souls with desires for fleshly gratification (lust of the flesh), covetousness (lust of the eye), and the vanity of worldly recognition (pride of life). For this reason, prayer must be made the saints of God, and it must be made fervently.
PRAYER POINT: Father, in the name of Jesus, grant me grace to increase the fervency and regularity of my prayers for Your people.