Peace Missionary Baptist Church

Ephesians 6:18-24

SPIRIT-FILLED PRAYING

Intro: As we have moved through the final verses of the book of Ephesians, we have been dealing with the issue of spiritual warfare. I think most believers really don’t believe that we are engaged in battle with an unseen, yet very powerful enemy. It doesn’t change the fact that we are.

Satan, the enemy of God, is also the enemy of the people of God. His desire for us is to defeat us, destroy us, and devour us. “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:” (1 Peter 5:8 KJV)

Using what the Bible calls “wiles” (Ephesians 6:11), which speaks of “deceit and diabolical schemes”, he seeks to trick us.

•  James 1:14 reminds us, “every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.”

•  The words “drawn away” are taken from the world of hunting and fishing, where the hunter and the fisherman use various means to lure they prey from a place of safety.

•  The word “enticed” means, “to catch by a bait.”

•  Satan is like a master hunter, or a master fisherman, he sets his traps, and baits his hooks. He lies in wait to capture and destroy the unsuspecting Christian.

•  If we are not “sober” and “vigilant” as the Bible tells us to be, we will be assaulted, or worse.

We do not have to become victims of Satan’s traps and devices. God has equipped us with everything we need to stand against the devil and attacks. If we use the means God has given us, we will not become casualties in this spiritual war in which we are engaged. That is the promise of God, Ephesians 6:13.

We have considered the pieces of the armor that are listed in Ephesians 6:14-17. I will not go over those verses again. I want to move beyond the pieces of the armor to the final, and perhaps greatest, provision we have been given by the Lord, the provision of prayer.

I want to consider the truths laid out in Ephesians 6:18-20 and preach about Spirit-Filled Prayer. These verses have a lot to say to us about the matter of prayer, and about how prayer should be utilized in our spiritual conflicts.

Paul does not put forth prayer as a weapon, but as the means for utilizing the armor he has already talked about. Prayer is how we put on “the whole armor of God”.

I want to point out three truths from this text. Let me share with you about The Concept Of Spirit-Filled Prayer; The Context Of Spirit-Filled Prayer; and The Content Of Spirit-Filled Prayer. Let’s talk about Spirit-Filled Prayer.

  I.  THE CONCEPT OF PRAYER

As is clear from the context, this passage is about “prayer”. Specifically, it is about how we are to utilize prayer in our daily lives, and in the context of spiritual warfare.

Let’s begin by defining prayer.

•  The dictionary defines prayer as “a request for help or expression of thanks addressed to God.”

•  The word used here speaks of “general requests made to God.”

•  So, if we take that definition, and I think they are pretty good, prayer is simply “talking to God.”

I would define prayer as “the breath of an redeemed soul, exhaling its needs and its worship toward God.”

This idea of prayer being the breath of the soul was in Martin Luther’s mind when he said, “To be a Christian without prayer is no more possible than to be alive without breathing.”

Mahatma Gandhi, who was not a Christian, but a Hindu who prayer to his gods, said this about prayer, “Prayer is not asking. It is a longing of the soul. It is daily admission of one's weakness. It is better in prayer to have a heart without words than words without a heart.” While Gandhi was wrong about the gods he worshiped, he was right about prayer.

Thus, anytime we turn our attention toward God, and speak to Him, we are praying. Our praying can take many forms.

•  We pray in private, at other times we pray in public.

•  We pray in loud voices, other times we whisper our prayers, and sometimes we pray in silence.

•  We set aside times for prayer, and at other times prayer is a spontaneous occurrence.

•  We pray in all types of positions and postures: we sit, we stand, we kneel, lie down.

•  We pray when we walk, when we drive, and when we rest.

•  We pray at home, at church, at work, or on vacation.

•  We pray with our hands up and heads down, or with our heads down and our hands up.

•  We pray with our eyes open or closed.

•  The Bible talks about many forms of prayer, places of prayer, postures for prayer, and circumstances of prayer. Yet the Bible does not exalt any form, place, posture, or circumstance for prayer above another.

Jesus prayed while He was here. He prayed standing, sitting, kneeling, and possibly in other positions as well.

We can pray anywhere, at anytime, about anything, and in any posture.

That is what prayer is, this passage also tells us when we should pray. Paul says, “praying always”. The word “always” carries the idea of “at all times, in all seasons, at every opportunity”.

The Jews in Paul’s day had several set times per day when they prayed. The Muslims in our day have five specific times for prayer every day.

Christianity also has a specific, set time for prayer. Our time for prayer is “always”. The Bible speaks of this in several places.

•  “Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer;”(Romans 12:12 KJV)

•  “Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving;” (Colossians 4:2 KJV)

•  “Pray without ceasing.”(1 Thessalonians 5:17 KJV)

•  There is no time when we do not need to pray.

•  There is no time when we cannot pray.

•  There is no time when God will not be listening and when He will not hear us.

•  To pray “always” does not mean that we walk around in an attitude of formal prayer. Neither Jesus not His disciples did that.

•  To pray “always” does not mean that we follow ritualistic prayers that are recited manually from books.

•  To pray “always” does not mean that we count beads or repeat memorized prayers and prayer phrases. That is what the pagans do, Matthew 6:7.

•  To pray “always” does mean that we live in a constant awareness of God and His presence.

•  To pray “always” does mean that the soul is ever reaching up toward God.

•  To pray “always” does mean that we see everything and every experience as a kind of prayer to God.

•  When we are tempted we call on Him, asking for hIs help.

•  When we see sin and wickedness, we call on Him to work in the situation to make it right and to work it out for His glory.

•  When we see something beautiful, we give thanks to God for that.

•  When we enter a time of trouble, we look to God for help and deliverance.

•  When we weep, we lean on God for support.

•  When we are happy, we lift our hearts to God in thanksgiving.

•  When we meet a lost sinner, we ask the Lord to convict them and save them. We also ask for His help to witness to them.

When life is lived in that way, it becomes an ever-ascending prayer to the Lord. There will be times when we get alone with God to pray. Most of the time, however, our lives should be a continual exhalation of  the soul breathing out its love for, and its dependence upon, God.

That is the idea behind the phrase “watching thereunto with all perseverance”. This means that we are to be “on the alert, with our eyes open” to the needs around us. We are to be “steadfast, constant, and persistent” as our souls reach upward to God for the help we and others need.  God honors the “always” prayers. God honors the “watchful” “persevering” prayers of His people.  In two parables, Jesus addressed this matter.

•  In one parable a persistent man continued asking for bread from his neighbor in the middle of the night. He asked until his request was granted. At the end of that parable, Jesus said this, “And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.” (Luke 11:9 KJV)

•  In the second parable, Jesus spoke about a widow who petitioned a judge about her need. She continued to aggravate the judge until he gave in and granted her request. At the end of that parable, Jesus said this: “And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?”(Luke 18:7–8 KJV)  The point of both those parables is that God answers the specific, persistent prayers of His people. It is always too soon to stop praying. Ever let your soul release its breath toward the Father in Heaven.