by Dr. Marlin Hotle
Acts 4:23-31- And being let go, they came to their own company, and reported all that the chief priests and the elders had said unto them. And they, when they heard it, lifted up their voice to God with one accord, and said, O Lord, thou that didst make the heaven and the earth and the sea, and all that in them is: who by the Holy Spirit, by the mouth of our father David thy servant, didst say, Why did the Gentiles rage, And the peoples imagine vain things?The kings of the earth set themselves in array, And the rulers were gathered together, Against the Lord, and against his Anointed: for of a truth in this city against thy holy Servant Jesus, whom thou didst anoint, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, were gathered together, to do whatsoever thy hand and thy council foreordained to come to pass. And now, Lord, look upon their threatenings: and grant unto thy servants to speak thy word with all boldness, while thy stretchest forth thy hand to heal; and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of thy holy Servant Jesus. And when they had prayed, the place was shaken wherein they were gathered together; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spake the word of God with boldness.” NASB
Why do we pray? What should be the primary focus of our prayers? For many of us, we pray as if we are attempting to change God’s mind. It is true that one of the categories of prayer found in the Bible involves asking God to change His mind. It is called “prayers of intercession.” But when you find examples of intercessory prayer in the Bible, they are never prayers one is praying on their own behalf. They are always prayed on behalf of others. For example, In Numbers 26, when Korah, Dathan, and Abiram led the Israelites in rebellion against Moses, God commanded Moses and Aaron to step aside because He was going to destroy the people. But Moses commanded Aaron to take the censor of incense and get between the people and God and make intercession on their behalf. And God listened and spared them. There are several other examples I could site such as the prayer of faith prayed on behalf of the sick in James 5, but in every case these prayers were prayed on behalf of others.
As you study prayer as it was utilized by the early Church in the book of Acts, it quickly becomes apparent that the disciples did not view prayer as changing God’s mind so much as attempting to find it. In fact, the two primary reasons the early church prayed was to discover the “mind” or will of God, and then to pray for courage to do it. This passage from Acts 4 is a good case in point. Following the day of Pentecost, Peter and John were arrested and cast into jail. The other disciples went back to the upper room and went to prayer. When Peter and John were called before the tribunal, they were beaten and commanded not to preach again in the name of Jesus.
They went back to the other disciples, who were behind locked doors and in fear, and reported all that had happened to them. Following their report, they all lifted their voices in prayer. If we had been in their shoes, what would we have prayed for? Would we have asked God for protection, or that He would change the minds of the Pharisees, or even that God would let us preach without mentioning Jesus name? Not the disciples. In this case, they did not have to ask God what He would want them to do, because they already knew. They had been given the Great Commission. So they prayed that God would give them boldness to do what He wanted them to do. And did God answer? “The place was shaken and they were all filled with boldness.”
Whenever we pray the right prayers, the prayers that are according to His will, He is just as anxious to answer them for us, just as He was for them!
Prayer: “Oh Lord, give me the wisdom to see and know Your will for my life, and grant me the courage to trust You and the boldness to follow You wherever and how ever You may lead!”
Today's Scripture reading comes from Acts 4 & Psalm 23. In modern times, we view Psalm 23 primarily as a psalm of comfort in mourning. However, David did not write this with funerals in mind. When you read it, remember that David's goal was to say, "God is enough and will supply all my needs..."