SERMON:THE FORCE OF PRAYER

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By Charles Ejoh

Today I welcome you all in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. I am constrained and burden to speak on this age long topic called prayer.

Ladies and gentlemen if you are hearing me or watching this message in any part of the world. I am speaking from the city of Jos,North Central,Nigeria and this period we are experiencing a very serious security challenge and there is palpable fear that has grip the city.

But hear me and hear me well, prayer is a force that overwhelms all forces of contentions. It is so frustrating to discover that the Church today is sleeping instead of praying. Please when I speak of prayer here I don’t mean religious prayer. Let me distort some of your theology a bit, not the Holy Mary kind of prayer I am referring to here but that of Jesus Christ and John Knox that great revivalist whom history told us was very prayerful that the then Queen of England once said:”I fear the prayer of John Knox more than the whole army of England”.

Wherever you are reading or listening to my voice, just begin to pray for your life as you hold your heads with your two hands and repeat after me:”Oh, Lord my God do not allow my enemies to prevail over me,in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth”.

The Psalmist understood the import of prayers when he cried out in Psalms 13vs3:Oh Lord my God: lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death..,,Here David was talking about prayerlessness and you can see that a lot of us are sleeping spiritual and the multiplier effect is what we are all experiencing in our lives,nations,families and Churches.May God have Mercy on us.

Men and Brethren, did you recall Apostle Paul call on believers in Ephesians that we are to pray all manner of prayers, so you can see that it is more apt for us today to respond to that clarion call before we are consume.

Please don’t mind that false teaching they call Grace but I refer to it as “cheap grace” that tend to down play prayers. Those preachers that do that are enemies of the cross.I advise you to run away from them they are false preachers. How can anybody down play prayer, are you more grace than Jesus Christ that the scriptures said that He prayed blood out of His body.(Hebrews 5vs7)

It was as a result of the necessity of prayers that Jesus taught his disciples about prayer according to Luke 11.:”Lord,teach us to pray,as John also taught his disciples.”

Two things are worth noting about this request .First,one section of John the Baptist’s curriculum in disciple-making focused on teaching his followers to pray. Secondly, that was what Jesus’ men asked Him to do for them.

One thing to note,in the life of Jesus, prayer was the work and ministry was the prize.

Let me end with this inspiring thoughts on prayer:

No man is greater than his prayer life. The pastor who is not praying is playing; the people who are not praying are straying. The pulpit can be a shop window to display one’s talents; the prayer closet allows no showing off. Poverty-stricken as the Church is today in many things, she is most stricken here, in the place of prayer. We have many organizers, but few agonizers; many players and payers, few pray-ers; many singers, few clingers; lots of pastors, few wrestlers; many fears, few tears; much fashion, little passion; many interferers, few intercessors; many writers, but few fighters. Failing here, we fail everywhere.

The ministry of preaching is open to few; the ministry of prayer—the highest ministry of all human offices—is open to all. This world hits the trail for hell with a speed that makes our fastest plane look like a tortoise; yet alas, few of us can remember the last time we missed our bed for a night waiting upon God for a world-shaking revival. The secret of praying is praying in secret. A sinning man will stop praying, and a praying man will stop sinning. We are beggared and bankrupt, but not broken, nor even bent.

Prayer is profoundly simple and simply profound….In the matter of New Testament, Spirit-inspired, hell-shaking, world-breaking prayer, never has so much been left by so many to so few. For this kind of prayer there is no substitute. We do it—or die! —Excerpt from Leonard Ravenhill, Why Revival Tarries (quoted in TBC, September 2008)

Key Scripture verses related to “Prayer”

Old Testament:

1 Samuel:9:16
2 Samuel:22:7
2 Kings:20:5
2 Chronicles:30:27
Nehemiah:1:11
Psalm:5:3
; Psa:18:6
; Psa:34:6
; Psa:66:20
; Psa:69:13
; Psa:102:1
; Psa:102:17
Proverbs:15:8; Pro:15:29Habakkuk:1:2

New TestamMatthew:21:13 Mat:21:22Mat:23:14Luke:6:12Acts:1:14; Acts:12:5-11 Romans:12:12

Ephesians:6:18Philippians:1:4; Phil:4:6-7 James:5:14-16
; Jam:5:17-18
1 Peter:4:7

Till I come your way in the second part of this message.Please don’t allow anything to kill or water down your prayer life because prayer is oxygen. It is very instrumental to your survival. Run away from that willful sins and dead ministers of the gospel or that tribal center you refer to as family church before you are destroyed.

Shalom. Till I come your way in the second part of this message.

Charles Ejoh is the Presiding Minister of Christian Foundation International,a Non-Denominational End-Time Ministry.He is based in Jos,capital of Plateau State,North Central ,Nigeria.

He can be reached on:09033227058/08057625566 or email:christian foundation int’l@gmail.com