What impact does prayer have on you? Or more importantly, on the people around you? Throughout the Bible, there were many people that prayed for those around them. People like Noah, Abraham, Moses, or Samuel who said in regards to the Israelites’ rebellion against God, in 1 Samuel 12:20-25, “.... As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by failing to pray for you. And I will teach you the way that is good and right. But be sure to fear the Lord and serve Him faithfully with all your heart; consider what great things He has done for you. Yet if you persist in doing evil, both you and your king will perish.”
Occasionally, even the kings would pray for the people of Israel. David made several prayers concerning his people; Hezekiah interceded at a very dark time in Israel’s history; in Isaiah 37:16-20, “...Now, Lord our God, deliver us…” But in spite of all the efforts those priests and kings made on behalf of their “brothers,” the people still rebelled and doom and gloom seemed inevitable.
Yet all those failed attempts for redemption and deliverance highlighted the urgency of a savior. Israel, God’s chosen people, didn’t have a future without His intercession. Then Jesus showed up!
He revived hope for God’s chosen people. His power, His love, and His discipleship left a standard that would be felt forever. In Luke 22:39-46, Jesus takes some of His chosen ones up to the mountain to talk to God on their behalf. John 17 beautifully expresses His longing for our deliverance:
“...Now I'm returning to You. I'm saying these things in the world's hearing so My people can experience My joy completed in them. I gave them Your word; the godless world hated them because of it, because they didn't join the world's ways, just as I didn't join the world's ways. I'm not asking that You take them out of the world but that You guard them from the Evil One. They are no more defined by the world than I am defined by the world. Make them holy—consecrated—with the truth; Your word is consecrating truth. In the same way that You gave me a mission in the world, I give them a mission in the world. I'm consecrating Myself for their sakes so they'll be truth-consecrated in their mission. I'm praying not only for them but also for those who will believe in Me because of them and their witness about Me. The goal is for all of them to become one heart and mind— just as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, so they might be one heart and mind with Us. Then the world might believe that You, in fact, sent Me. The same glory You gave Me, I gave them, so they'll be as unified and together as We are— I in them and You in Me. Then they'll be mature in this oneness, and give the godless world evidence that You've sent me and loved them in the same way You've loved me. Father, I want those You gave Me to be with Me, right where I am, so they can see My glory, the splendor You gave Me…” (in the Message Translation)
Now, more than ever, we need to consider the power of prayer. James 5:16, “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” Consider calling some friends, family, or coworkers together to pray for our nation and the spreading of God’s word. 1 Timothy 2:1, “I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession, and thanksgiving be made for all people…”
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