In these days of perilous times, the instruction from scripture continually reveals itself to be the wisdom and power of God! In the book of Ephesians, in the sixth chapter, Paul was instructing the church at Ephesus to be clothed in the garments of the Christian warrior. Many of those articles of armor we have heard from childhood, but the most important portion is always left out!
We have heard of the helmet of salvation, the breastplate of righteousness, the belt of truth, the shoes of the gospel of peace, the shield of faith, the sword of the spirit, which is the word of GOD! Look at these verses again…
15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:
Paul does not finish his thought of being clothed in the WHOLE armor of God, without putting on the finishing touches of prayer! Prayer must accompany your salvation, your entrance into truth, your covering of the righteousness of Jesus Christ the Savior, the whole counsel of God which is our sword of truth, and the everlasting Gospel, the author and finisher of our shield of faith!
Prayer is so important that a picture of it was made into the pattern of the old testament tabernacle. The foursquare altar of incense, which is a picture of the prayers of the saints, reveals this truth to us. And as God’s word was given by inspiration of God, and is profitable, we see a mirror image of prayer revealed in the New testament covenant! In the book of Timothy we catch a view of the four corners or types of prayers.
- Giving of thanks
- Prayers
- Supplications
- Intercessions
1 Timothy 2:1 I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men;
Paul wasn’t telling Timothy that we should be praying for all men…but that all believers should be making these types of prayers. As the picture in the old testament tabernacle of the altar of incense, the word prayer in the Hebrew has the same foursquare meaning, and each has its place in the life of the believer, an indicator of our maturity in the LORD JESUS CHRIST.
First, there is the see-khaw prayer. This is the prayer of meditation and thanksgiving. This is the type of prayer when we sit together and before a meal we pause for a moment to meditate upon the goodness of the LORD and to give HIM thanks for the provisions that HE has provided! It is not intended that this be the only type of prayer that we engage in. We must always be ready to give thanks to the LORD for HIS providing power, but must be willing to move on to another portion of prayer.
Secondly, there is the law-keesh prayer. It is the whispered, continual prayer that we should perform in our heart. This is the type of prayer that is mentioned in the book of Thessalonians.
1 Thessalonians 5:16 Rejoice evermore. 5:17 Pray without ceasing.
5:18 In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.
In this type of prayer you can continually be in meditation upon the LORD JESUS, and be in the presence of the LORD as you talk with HIM. This wonderful portion of prayer can be feasted upon regardless of where you may be. It can be enjoyed in the middle of a crowd of people, in the workplace, at the store, and while performing your daily duties.
Thirdly, there is the aw-thar prayer. This is the prayer of supplication, when the hour of prayer seems to call you to find that private place of pouring out your heart unto LORD. It is the intense prayer of crying out to GOD in petition for needs that you have. This prayer is the deep developing of your personal relationship with JESUS, as you acknowledge to HIM all of your weaknesses and in finding the low, humble place of supplication, realize to a greater degree HIS complete power to make you whole and complete in HIM! It is in the aw-thar prayer that you will find JESUS to be that lily of the valley, the rose of sharon, the bright and morning star! JESUS was that example to us, as HE prayed. Hebrews tells us of HIS aw-thar prayers…
Hebrews 5:7 Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared;
Let us be willing to find that aw-that corner of prayer where we with strong crying and tears call out to JESUS who is able to save us from death! The enemy of our souls comes to steal, kill and destroy. We face the death of the enemy of our souls daily, and need fresh aw-thar prayer to lift us up above the valley of shadows of death. The enemy comes to steal our joy, kill our faith, and destroy our relationship with our bridegroom, JESUS. He attempts to do all of it by keeping us out of the deeper portions of prayer.
The fourth corner of prayer is tefil-law prayer. This is intercessory prayer. It is just as intense as the aw-thar prayer, but in this prayer you are not praying for yourself or for your personal needs. You are in intercessory prayer, calling out to the LORD for the needs of others. We must be as intent for the needs of others as we are for our own. Only in the tefil-law prayer can we look beyond our own problems and through the SPIRIT be able to cry out for the needs of others with the intensity that we would for our own needs. When you can cry to the LORD with strong crying and tears for others to be saved, to be healed, to be provided for, then you have found that full stature corner of prayer in the LORD JESUS CHRIST that he wants us to experience! Many Christians have never left the first or second corner of their prayer life, and do not think it necessary to engage in such deep prayer for GOD to hear them! He does hear the prayer of thanksgiving, and the quiet whispered prayer, but calls us to the garden with HIM, where we find the deeper portions of intense prayer, where we KNOW that we have had a time of communion with our LORD, and have supped with HIM and HE with us!
For the last two corners of prayer, in these prayer closets there are boxes of tissues, because as you begin to cry out to the LORD with strong crying, rivers of tears will flow, cleansing from your hearts the thoughts, attitudes, and perceptions that are unlike HIM. The same tears will water the dry grounds of our souls, sprouting fresh new LIFE and inspiration in the LORD JESUS CHRIST! New heights of revelation, new depths of humility, new lengths and breadths of HIS mercy and love, await those who will avail themselves of the four corners of prayer!
James 5:16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray for one another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
Find these places of prayer and be clothed in them! It is in the places of supplication and intercession where we touch the throne of grace! We need these portions of prayer more than ever before! As we look around us and see the end of all things drawing near, how precious it is to find that place of sweet relief and communion with the Lord, growing in grace and in the knowledge of him, and finding him to be our ALL in ALL!
Seek the Lord Jesus today while he may be found!
Pastor Stephen
Just finished a two week teaching of this teaching of yours on prayer in our SS class, and it was very informing for me, and well received by the class. I has helped make my personal prayer life stronger, and more deliberate. Thanks brother…this is a great resource for anyone wanting to grow in the Lord, and be prepared for the tumultuous days just ahead!