"Truth alone, empowered by the Spirit, can wither
the deception and oppression of the enemy. In
II Corinthians 10:3-6, Paul says that the weapons
we fight with have divine, dynamite-like power
to demolish arguments and every pretension that
sets itself up against the knowledge of God.
He is describing subtle thoughts, beliefs, and
mindsets that have been sown into our thinking
by the enemy. Truth, spoken in faith and empowered
by prayer - especially in agreement with others
- will root out faulty thinking and bring our
minds into obedience to Christ." Tom White
It
would be absolutely ridiculous to go to war without
having a weapon of offense. Yet you and I
are involved in spiritual warfare daily and often
enter the frontlines of battle spiritually without
using the Sword of the Spirit, the Word of God
(Ephesians
6:17). This must not be. The Word of God is
a sword that pierces truth into enemy strongholds.
The enemy loses in the courtroom of heaven as
we present our case with the truth of God's Word.
As the quote says above, the Word of God has divine,
dynamite-like power to demolish every scheme
of the enemy. The truth of God, spoken in faith
can annihilate the enemy's plans against you and
all that you are praying for. Don't underestimate
this powerful weapon. You and I must have it ready
for quick use as we bring our petitions before
God.
I
believe that major breakthrough in prayer is beginning
to happen worldwide because prayer groups around
the world are beginning to pray the Word of God.
Intercessors are more and more opening their Bibles
in the prayer room and claiming the truth of God's
Word in the courtroom of heaven. The worship and
intercession meetings (Harp and Bowl) I am involved
in are using the Word of God to launch into powerful
prayers combined with powerful worship and antiphonal
singing. It is amazing how taking a verse of Scripture
and bringing it before the Throne of God leads
into such powerful Holy Spirit-led petitions.
If you start doing this, I am sure you will agree.
The Holy Spirit knows how to take the Word and
launch it into extraordinary declarations of truth
and intensive prayers before the Throne of God.
Using
the Word in the Courtroom of Heaven
"Anyone
who trusts that he can be an intercessor without
knowing and being heavily dependent upon God's
Word is hopelessly deceived. The Spirit works
on the Word. It is for this reason that Jesus
taught that true worshippers must worship in
Spirit and Truth, or according to the Word.
He is the Holy Spirit who quickens Scripture
in intercession and sets such as legal precedence
upon which to base our battle, for indeed the
enemy is a legalist and must be beaten in the
law court of Heaven before He is ever defeated
in the heavenly and then in the natural." Michael
Howard
We
hear the battles in the courtroom on a daily basis,
but often we don't realize that there is a law
court in Heaven. If you study law in any nation,
you realize that without law and order, there
is extreme chaos and that wickedness prevails.
We fail to realize that in heaven, God is the
lawmaker and judge. So when we present our case
before God in heaven, understand that the Word
of God is extremely important, because it is the
absolute Truth that you and I stand on. When we
intercede before God, we can list the petitions
that we want God to answer. In understanding the
language of the law court of heaven, we must know
the Word of God and be thoroughly familiar with
God's law. The evidence from Scripture supports
our petitions. Many years ago, I was a legal secretary,
and so I know the importance of legal evidence.
As a secretary, I had to have the sentence structure
right and every word perfectly spelled. One mistake,
and I would have to start over. This is before
the computer age. We couldn't even use "white-out"
to cover up the mistakes. Legal papers had to
be perfect. When you and I pray, we should ask
specifically and clearly. We can state our requests,
telling God why we hold that position. You may
want to write out your requests just as a lawyer
would. Find Scripture that corresponds with your
requests and use them as you pray. Claim those
promises from Scripture. The positive declaration
of Scripture is a powerful defensive and offensive
weapon. The enemy wants to keep us vague and without
faith in our asking. The Word energizes our prayers.
Using
the Word of God is one of the major keys in intercession.
When we bring God's Word in our intercession and
cry out to God in the courtroom of heaven, bringing
again and again before Him the truth of what He
says in Scripture, victory must come. God cannot
deny His Word. When God spoke the word in creation,
the Spirit and the Word quickened life. When you
speak the Word by the direction of the Holy Spirit,
life will come forth in power. Martin Luther knew
the potential of God's Word in defeating the enemy.
One Word spoken by the power of the Holy Spirit
can make the enemy fall.
"'One
little word shall fell him.' This line from
Martin Luther's historic hymn refers to a basic
principle of spiritual warfare: Standing on
and speaking out God's Word slams the adversary
and brings us onto victory ground." Tom White
The
Word of God reveals the power and the greatness
of the Word. Psalm 119 is the longest chapter
in the Bible (176 verses), and it is a prayer
that reveals the greatness of the Word and the
passion of the Psalmist for the Word of God! We
read in Psalm 119:12-15, "Praise be to you,
O Lord; teach me your decrees. With my lips I
recount all the laws that come from your mouth.
I rejoice in following your statutes as one rejoices
in great riches. I meditate on your precepts and
consider your ways. I delight in your decrees;
I will not neglect your word."
Why is the Word of God so important in prayer?
"In
the court of heaven, Scripture is the law! When
we approach God with His Word, we can be assured
of a heavenly audience. Each argument we make
before Judge Jehovah should be offered on the
basis of what He has said. After all, the law
(Scripture) is the language of the court. So,
prayer is an appeal of faith based on the Word
of God. Sometimes we can predict the verdict
God will render because we know what God has
said." Eddie and Alice Smith
-
The Word of God is needed in effective prayer
- When we pray the Word, we can more effectively
communicate our desires because our hearts are
filled with Scripture.
-
The Word of God is a book of prayer -
Prayer and the Word are a powerful combination
that produces dynamic intercession. Praying
the Word will bring creativity and depth into
your prayer life.
- The
Word of God helps you declare God's promises
- David knew this. He prayed in I Chronicles
17:23-24, "And now, Lord let the promises
you have made concerning your servant and his
house be established forever. Do as you promised,
so that it will be established and that your
name will be great forever."
- The
Word of God establishes support to our prayers
- In the same way as evidence brings support
to an earthly law case, our bringing the Word
of God to support our prayers in heaven establish
support to our prayers.
- The
Word of God is the law prayed in the courtroom
of heaven
- God is true to His Word. When we bring in
His Word as an argument of truth in our prayers,
God has to answer.
- The
Word of God increases faith in prayer -
When you pray God's Word, you cannot help but
grow in faith. The spoken Word in our prayers
creates a "yes" in our spirits and rises
up into faith-filled prayers. I have seen this
again and again.
- The
Word of God helps us pray the will of God
- Oh, that we but understand that the Holy Spirit
is essentially the Spirit of the Word and the
Spirit of prayer! He will cause the Word to
become a joy and a light in our souls, and he
will also most surely help us in prayer to know
the mind and will of God, and find in it our
delight.
- Jesus
prayed the Word of God while on earth
- He used the Word of God as He prayed in Matthew
4 when He was tempted by Satan. He is our
example.
"Think
of the Lord Jesus: in His youth and manhood
He treasured the Word in His heart. In the
temptation in the wilderness, and on every
opportunity that presented itself… He showed
that the Word of God filled His heart. And
in His prayer life He manifested two things:
first that the Word supplies us with material
for prayer and encourages us in expecting
everything from God. The second is that it
is only by prayer that we can live such a
life that every word of God can be fulfilled
in us." Andrew Murray
For
additional training on Biblical prayer; the penetrating
Word of God and the promises of God, read the
book called Intercessors Arise - Book 2
by Debbie Przybylski.
Training
Links
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