The Technology of Prayer: Reexamining the Biblical Purpose, Power, and Principles of Prayer...

Network

Introduction

Very few topics in the realm of religion—especially Christianity—have been devoted more time, focus, and attention than the topic of prayer. Countless sermons have been preached, lessons taught, books and articles written, and seminars or conferences held on the subject of prayer. The abundance of information that can be found just by doing a basic search on this topic is mind-boggling.

Yet, in spite of all the focus on it, prayer is—in my opinion—one of the most misunderstood, misapplied, and misappropriated biblical practices among believers today. This observation is in itself very puzzling and disturbing because prayer is supposed to be a very fundamental and elementary principle in the Body of Christ.

When Paul and the other apostles wrote letters (epistles) to the New Covenant Community of believers during the early ages of God’s Ekklesia,¹ the purpose of their writing was never to establish a theological treatise on any particular subject. It is true that their writings did eventually become the basis of our theological beliefs due to their authoritative inspiration as what we refer to today as the New Testament Scriptures. However, this was not the writers’ original purpose in writing. As apostles, like the prophets before them, their main objective and purpose for writing was to instruct and correct regarding prevailing issues in the respective Kingdom communities (churches) of their time. Their focus was correcting errors and meeting doctrinal needs, not teaching or expounding on their favorite subjects.

Similarly—but in no way equal to or as authoritative as our apostolic and prophetic forefathers—my primary concern in this book is dealing with common errors and abuses in the practice of prayer rather than painting a vivid theological picture as a scholar or mature teacher would do. Many others have sought to provide a formula for prayer or a theological dissertation on how to pray in various situations. Rather than attempting to replicate their efforts, the purpose of this writing is to bring a greater level of sight and understanding regarding the technology by which prayer operates.

Technology here simply refers to the art, science, or principles that govern the effective functionality of any field. For instance, there is an art, science, or technology to swimming, singing, or any earthly, spiritual, or religious practice. When we properly adhere to the technology of a particular field of endeavor, we maximize our potential and realize and establish an effective functionality in that area. When proper technology is ignored, the opposite occurs.

It is no different with prayer. When we truly understand and apply the biblical principles that serve to govern both the functionality and effectiveness of prayer from a renewed Kingdom mindset, we experience amazing (supernatural) results. We become confident that our prayers are not just heard some of the time, but all of the time. We are able to rest in the confidence that God will answer, not may answer. We experience true intimacy with God. We discover the hidden power of prayer to change us first, rather than delusively expecting God to change everything or everyone around us as His major priority. But most of all, we discover how to effectively partner with heaven so that God’s Kingdom is advanced in the earth.

Conversely, when we lack understanding regarding the principles or technology of prayer, failure is the result. This ignorance or lack of understanding is the primary reason for the very apparent failure in our personal and corporate prayer initiatives today. We may choose to blindly disregard or ignore these failures by making religious excuses, but that only creates delusion. Unless we are brutally honest with ourselves and confess our failure and need for understanding to God, there can be no help for us. God can only fill an empty cup.

It is my belief that you are holding this book in your hands right now because you have a desire to learn—which in most cases will first require you to unlearn—so that your prayer becomes more effectual. It is impossible to build truth upon an existing foundation of error. Therefore, erroneous beliefs must be dismantled first before we can proceed into truth. If there is one basic principle we can take away from God’s prophetic charge to Jeremiah (see Jer. 1:10), it is that it takes twice as many negatives to establish one positive. It takes twice as much effort to root out and to pull down, to destroy, and to throw down (that which is incorrect and false), than it takes to build and to plant (divinely given truth).

Throughout the course of this reading, especially in the earlier parts, you will encounter many negative observations or statements that may appear overly critical to popular Christian beliefs or religious practices. Do not become alarmed or offended by this. It is a necessary process in our migration towards truth. There is no other way forward. We must allow God to invalidate, destroy and remove the old rotting foundation—that which has deviated from Christ and His biblical pattern—before we can allow Him to build us a new one. Keep the Jeremiah 1:10 principle at the back of your mind as we move forward. We are about to embark upon a heavenly journey into The Technology of Prayer.

Chapter 1

Rediscovering God’s Original Purpose

Prayer is without question the most common and universally accepted spiritual activity known to man. It transcends race, culture, age, gender, religion, or any other earthly division. It is practiced by both the devoutly religious and non-religious alike. In addition, prayer is ancient, being one of the earliest mentioned biblical practices recorded in Scripture. This particular point should shed some light as to why prayer is so widely accepted and practiced across all races, cultures, and religions, and has been so for many generations. Ironically, it is also because the practice of prayer is so ancient that it is so misunderstood today. Purpose often becomes lost in tradition, especially when that tradition has been around for generations.

I remember hearing a story many years ago about a woman who would always cut a turkey in two and then cook each piece separately in the oven, one at a time, because doing so was part of a secret recipe that had been in her family for generations. After being questioned by her husband, one day the woman decided to ask her grandmother the reason behind this bizarre practice. The grandmother replied that there was no special secret or significance to this practice. It was the only way she could get the bird to fit due to the small size of her oven! While I am not certain as to the credibility of this story, being as there have been many variations of it over the years, the principle it communicates is certainly true: Purpose gets lost in tradition. If we keep doing the same thing long enough it becomes routine, and chances are we (or future generations) will forget the real reason why we began doing it in the first place.

Unfortunately, the practice of prayer has suffered the same fate. Its true purpose has become obscured or lost through generations of blind religious tradition or just plain misinformation. Misinformation can be twice as destructive as blind religious tradition. It is one thing to know that you don’t know because a person who doesn’t know can still be open to be taught. However, a person who has been misinformed and, therefore, thinks that he (or she) knows will often resist being taught something new, because in his mind he already knows. Can you imagine what could have happened if the husband had not questioned his wife and prompted her to question her grandmother? What if instead of acknowledging that she didn’t actually know, the wife had taken the stubborn approach and became defensive to her husband’s questioning? They would probably have continued a meaningless tradition for generations longer. We need to take a cue from this woman’s husband and start asking the right questions. And, like the woman, we should be humble enough to acknowledge that we really don’t know.

Prayer is a very popular subject. There is quite a lot that has been written and spoken about prayer. I remember reading a foreword recently written by a very reputable Christian leader who claimed that he has at least six shelves of books on the subject of prayer. I confess that I have nowhere near that many, but I would surmise that no other biblical subject comes close to matching the quantity that has been written on the subject of prayer. Yet, in spite of this, misunderstanding and error continue to be widespread with regard to its operation and practice, on a global scale and in every known religion, including Christianity. The questions we need to ask are: Do we really understand what biblical prayer is? What is the true purpose of prayer? What is its primary function? How do we pray? How did Jesus pray? What should we pray about? Who should pray? Why does my prayer fail? What is the correct science or technology that enables prayer to function? How should prayer operate within a corporate context? These questions and more will be addressed throughout the course of this book as we seek to wade through the hype and misinformation that often accompany this subject.

Before we proceed any further in identifying these important core principles of prayer, it is important that we take some time first to redefine what prayer is and what God’s intended purpose is for this very valuable spiritual exercise. Prayer was designed by God for a very specific purpose and function. Therefore, we will never truly be able to understand or accurately grasp the principle by which prayer operates until we first take time to comprehend the divine purpose for which it was given. Otherwise abuse and misuse are inevitable.

IT IS NOT ABOUT YOU

Contrary to what we may have thought, or heard taught, prayer was not given for the purpose of satisfying our own personal—or rather, selfish or carnal—wants, needs, or desires. Neither was it given as a means for us to escape from every affliction, test, hardship, adversity, or trial. This is not to deny the fact that there is substantial scriptural evidence to support prayers of a more personal nature. We can find many examples of such prayers in the Psalms, which in addition to being a scriptural songbook is the largest prayer book in the Bible. However, anyone who has carefully read the Book of Psalms will note that the prayers that take on a more personal nature in this book maintain an undeniably vertical focus of wanting to thoroughly please God. They mostly address internal issues, repentance, desire for God, praise and thanksgiving, confession of personal weakness with trust in God, and deliverance from enemies. You will never find one instance of a prayer that focuses upon the petitioner’s own earthly, selfish, or carnal physical wants or desires such as a new house, horse, property, wife, money, clothes, job, etc.

Long before David became the ruler of Israel, kingship was his prophesied calling. However, Scripture records not a single instance of David praying to become king or to live in a palace rather than in a cave as a fugitive and vagabond. The reason David never prayed this way was because he understood the true meaning and purpose of prayer. His heart was postured toward seeking and pleasing God rather than fulfilling his own carnal desires; therefore, he never used prayer as a license for making self-seeking requests. Also, we should note that David’s prayers for help and deliverance during times of intense affliction, hardship, or trial were never focused upon God removing the affliction, hardship, or trial, but on God giving him grace, power, and help in the midst of it.

These types of personal prayers are acceptable because they function in unison with God’s divine purpose. It is God’s desire for us to seek Him in such a manner, or for such provision, and He has promised to sustain us during times of testing (Matt. 6:11; 1 Cor. 10:13). We will discuss these prayer issues in greater detail toward the end of this book. Notwithstanding, it would be incorrect to assume that the primary purpose or main objective of prayer is to serve you. In other words, prayer is not about you!

From a scriptural standpoint, the true purpose of prayer is not ambiguous. After all, it is visibly expressed through every righteous prayer recorded in the Bible. However, the corrupt influences of religious and secular education, television, media, peers, societal culture, man’s natural tendency toward selfishness, and, unfortunately, incorrect religious doctrine or practice have effectively eroded that understanding. As a result, both children and adults tend to approach God as a big heavenly Santa Claus from whom we can request nice gifts. Many of us who consider ourselves experts at prayer approach God with the same mentality, bombarding Him with a long grocery list of personal (or rather, carnal) requests. Many won’t approach God at all unless they have a personal crisis, need, or emergency. But prayer was not designed for our own personal comfort or happiness.

So if the purpose of prayer is not to get our personal (selfish or carnal) needs met, what is its purpose beyond the obvious communion with God? To effectively answer this question will require that we go back to the beginning when prayer is first introduced or mentioned in Scripture. We will discover the foundational purpose of prayer by examining a story from the life of Abraham.

THE PURPOSE OF PRAYER ACCORDING TO SCRIPTURE

Prayer in its simplest form is speaking or communicating with God. As such, this principle is embodied in Scripture from as early as the creation of man. However, the very first time that I can find the word pray or prayer mentioned from a practical standpoint of communication between man and God in Scripture is in Genesis, the twentieth chapter:

Now then, return the man's wife, for he is a prophet, so that he will pray for you, and you shall live. But if you do not return her, know that you shall surely die, you and all who are yours."(Genesis 20:7 ESV)

The context of this passage is Abraham’s journey to a place Scripture calls Gerar. Accompanied by his wife, Sarah, Abraham sojourned in the territory of Gerar, which was ruled by a king named Abimelech. King Abimelech appears to have taken quite a fancy to Sarah and inquired of Abraham about her. Apparently Abraham feared for his safety, believing the inhabitants of this land would quickly terminate his life if they knew he was the husband of this beautiful woman, so he presented Sarah as his sister rather than his spouse. King Abimelech then sent for Sarah and brought her to his palace.

After Abimelech had sent for Sarah, God appeared to him in a dream. In the dream God informed Abimelech that Sarah was another man’s wife and that He was going to hold Abimelech accountable for taking her, even though he had not yet touched her. God threatened Abimelech’s life for something done in ignorance, while seemingly holding Abraham guiltless for his deception—but the latter is beside the point for the moment. Abimelech pled his case that his actions were done in innocence based on the false information provided by both Abraham and Sarah. God affirmed his integrity in this matter and commanded him to restore Sarah to her husband. God then identified Abraham as a prophet who had been given the authority to pray life unto Abimelech and his household. The dream made it clear, however, that failure to comply by returning Sarah to Abraham would mean certain death for Abimelech and his house. In other words, there would be no prayer or release of divine healing over Abimelech and his household until or unless he had been obedient to God’s command.¹

A number of interesting points can be made here. First off, not only is this the first official mention of the word pray in Scripture as it relates to communication between man and God, but it is also the first use and mention of the word prophet in Scripture as well. Is it merely coincidental that these two words are first mentioned together?

The word prophet here is used in the context of one who not only has the ability to hear from God as an intimate friend, but also one who has the authority to speak (pray or intercede) to and for God in the execution of God’s purpose and judgments in the earth. Abraham was authorized to pray and release life over Abimelech and his household in a prophet-priestly fashion after God had afflicted them with a curse as a result of Abimelech having harbored another man’s wife (Gen. 20:17-18).²

Bear in mind that God was the One who put the curse upon Abimelech’s household to begin with. Yet instead of God promising to remove the curse by His own initiative when Sarah was returned, His requirement was that Abraham should pray for it to be removed. We can see here the tension and interconnection between divine sovereignty and human responsibility in prayer. This suggests to me that if Abraham did not pray, or prayed incorrectly, the curse would not have been removed and Abimelech’s household would probably have died in their affliction. God wanted Abraham to partner with Him in undoing what He Himself had done!

It’s interesting to note that during the dialogue between God and Abimilech in the dream, Abraham was not present. Yet God still had complete confidence in Abraham that once his wife was returned, Abraham would pray life and healing over Abimelech and his household. Abraham’s natural response may have been to take personal vengeance upon him for having taken his wife, even though he had deceived Abimelech by presenting her as his sister. Yet God had confidence in Abraham’s response because He knew that Abraham heard God and would respond based on what he had heard rather than from a place of hurt or offense (Gen. 20:17-18).

In other words, Abraham was able to pray effectively because he heard God accurately, and he was able to hear God accurately because he prayed effectively. Based upon this principle, there is no fundamental difference between prayer and prophecy to the extent that they both require sensitivity to the voice of God in order to be genuinely functional or effective. Prophets and prayer are very closely related throughout Scripture because they are mutually dependent in principle—as two sides to the same coin. The activities of both are never self-focused.

This brings us to the main point of the text: The first time prayer—both the word prayer and the official, practical exercise or activity of prayer—is mentioned in Scripture, it is mentioned in the context of exercising God’s divine will, purpose, or intent in the earth as its primary function. Secondary to this purpose is the function of ministering to or helping others as an expression of God’s mercy and love. There is absolutely no indication of prayer being issued from a place of self-preservation, personal satisfaction, or self-gratification.

Another way of stating this is that prayer is first used as a means of executing God’s righteous rule and judgments in the earth, followed by a clear emphasis on ministering help to others (mercy and compassion), bringing life and healing where there was death and destruction.. In fact, a careful study of the activity of prayer in Scripture as a whole will reveal an overwhelming emphasis on these virtues. Despite the occurrence of various petitions that appear to be of a more personal nature, prayer in Scripture is always focused upon fulfilling the will of God as its primary objective. In addition to this foundational purpose, we often find the horizontal expression of ministering, helping, or bringing healing and deliverance to others.

We live in a day and age today when everything has become about me. Not only is this true in the world, it has also become the defining face of religious Christianity today. This perverse heart and mentality runs so deep in today’s religion that it has corrupted the very definition and understanding of prayer. Many of us act as if we believe that prayer was given primarily as a means for serving or satisfying our own needs or selfish desires.

THE PRAYER OF JABEZ

The prayer of Jabez is a perfect example. Many of us will remember how the name of this obscure biblical character and his somewhat unique petition to God, nestled ambiguously in-between a long list of genealogical records, became immensely popular several years ago. I believe one of the reasons it became so popular was due to a misconception that Jabez’s prayer seemed to legitimize, validate, or justify our own natural human tendencies toward selfishness. Nothing could be further from the truth!

Now Jabez was more honorable than his brothers, and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, Because I bore him in pain. And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying, Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain! So God granted him what he requested. (1 Chronicles 4:9-10 NKJV)

It’s unfortunate, and very alarming to me, that of the numerous Bible translations used to examine this text (over twenty), the New King James Version was the only one with a truly accurate translation of the text, for reasons we will see below. I have discovered that when there is confusion regarding the meaning of a Scripture text or divergence among translations, it helps to examine the text in its entire context.

We can safely assume that the Holy Spirit, who inspired the writing of this text, understands the human tendency to look for a license for selfishness. Knowing that Jabez’s prayer could be misconstrued in this way, He inspired the writer to first provide a description of Jabez’s noble character as the defining factor for the prayer that follows. Jabez was described as honorable for a reason, which leads me to believe that he was neither selfish nor self-seeking.

The word honorable in the Hebrew language basically means weighty or heavy, but it can be used in a wide variety of applications. Its usage here can either imply outward riches, wealth, and respect or a rich and weighty substance of internal accuracy and inward character. In light of the context, I am inclined to believe that the latter is being described here rather than the former.

The unique circumstances regarding Jabez’s life and birth are also foundational to the story. His mother named him Jabez because she bore him in pain, which seems to imply above normal pain, prolonged labor, or various complications during childbirth. Whatever the case, Jabez was given a name and identity that etymologically and contextually meant one who causes pain, grief, sorrow, or distress. This meaning is very important to the text. In ancient Hebrew culture names were never given or chosen frivolously. Names were indicative of identity, character, and destiny. Therefore, Jabez was destined to live a life of causing others pain, even though he would do so unintentionally.

When these qualifying key points are taken into consideration as the basis for Jabez’s unique prayer, it becomes quite apparent that the primary emphasis and overarching concern of Jabez’s prayer was not selfish ambition or personal increase, but a desire to be a blessing to others rather than a perpetual cause for pain or sorrow. Thus the NKJV’s translation of ... that I may not cause pain! toward the end of verse ten is the only accurate one. Jabez’s prayer was never about his own pain and sorrow because the very connotation of his name implied a pain and sorrow projected on others rather than upon him. He was the cause of the pain rather than the victim of it.

God answered Jabez’s prayer because it was not self-seeking. It was a noble petition of a man who desired to live a life where he would cause blessing and honor rather than sorrow and pain. His prayer was motivated by love and compassion rather than by covetousness, lust, greed, or selfishness. Any personal dimension to this prayer is quickly overshadowed by a much greater emphasis on submission to God and genuine concern for others.

REFUSAL TO TAKE PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY

Our failure to recognize or understand God’s original purpose and intent regarding prayer has caused many today to place unrealistic expectations upon God. Due in part to the self-centered teaching that plagues churches today, as well as the narcissistic mentality that has become the spirit of this age, many believers today think and act like prayer operates in some kind of spiritual vacuum, void of any sense of personal responsibility. And even though most of us would deny it, we have