MARCH 15
Theme: Teach us to pray
RECAP
Phil: When you pray say …
Gatherers prayer pattern, God band prayer jam
Esther All kinds of prayer
Have people checked Berean notes? So much good stuff in there.
Topic: Joyful house of prayer for the nations
BIG PRIORITY OF JESUS
John 2: 14 – 15: And found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers of money sitting. And when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers' money, and overthrew the tables;
Isaiah 56:7 Even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer: their burnt offerings and their sacrifices shall be accepted upon mine altar; for mine house shall be called an house of prayer for all people.
Matt 21:22 And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves
Mark 11:17 And he taught, saying unto them, Is it not written, My house shall be called of all nations the house of prayer? but ye have made it a den of thieves.
Luke 19:46 Saying unto them, It is written, My house is the house of prayer: but ye have made it a den of thieves.
Jesus is here declaring His temple should be House of prayer for the nations. This story in the scriptures was the most physically aggressive act we see Jesus displaying while here on earth. This is Jesus’ priority. If any of you wonder what is God’s will for my life. Here’s one thing that you can do that is absolutely in God’s will is to pray for the nations!
HOW GOD CHANGED MY PRIORITY
There were many years when I felt God’s call to pray for the nation of New Zealand. So in obedience, I did commit to regular prayer for NZ. One day God gave me a vision. I was at a church service Sunday gathering, actually praising the lord with my arms outstretched in worship and I felt like I was whisked up high above the earth, high above the nation of NZ – high enough to see below me the islands. From that position, I saw one of His arms extended down from heaven down the west coast, and the other down the east coast and reaching down, His arms kept on stretching until they encompassed the whole of NZ. The scripture that came to mind at the time was;
Isaiah 59:1 Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear.
Those of you who have experienced this type of revelation/visitation from the Lord will know that when God downloads a vision, He gives a download of His word, His confirmation, encouragement etc In this instance God downloaded the faith to believe for the salvation of the whole nation. NZ was around 3m people then, the same number that Moses delivered out of Egypt. From that time on my prayers changed from “Oh God please have mercy on NZ” to “God I thank you that you are ABLE to save the nation of NZ and it is your will that none would perish”. A change from pleading with God, bringing a request before Him to a conversation of faith KNOWING that God is ABLE to save to the uttermost. I dedicated myself to thanking God, prophesying faith and salvation over the nation and with that my love grew and expanded to include those that had sojourned to the land of NZ from all sorts of places making NZ a multi-racial nation that it is today. I also realized I had been praying for the land of NZ but not necessarily praying for its people, all of its people. NZ was no longer made up of just the indigenous Maori people and British colonists. And that was what God was looking for – an all-encompassing love for the people of the land of New Zealand whether they were indigenous, immigrants, overstayers or native New Zealanders! This whole experience transformed my prayer life at the time.
The fullness of the vision hasn’t come to pass yet.
Some years later God spoke to me again in a vision. I was taken up way above NZ and from the North so that looking down there it lay before me. Then I was taken higher and higher until it became much much smaller and the east coast of Australia was visible out of the corner of my right eye. I was taken up even higher to where the nation of NZ was like a couple of little dots. This time the Lord spoke to me about NZ, how I had prayed and was concerned for it but in relation to the rest of the world is was tiny in comparison. God spoke about the great powers of America, England, the world and said “If you really want to see change in New Zealand then you need to wrestle with the powers of the great nations. He reminded me about the impact the global recession had on New Zealand but that this was not a reciprocal thing. Events happen in NZ and sometimes Americans don’t even get to hear about it – let alone there being any impact on it. NZ was and is quite irrelevant in that regard. NZ is a small nation and of little strength. Whereas there are other nations that have much power over not just their own nation but other nations and even the world. America is one of those nations.
I felt the Lord saying to me at the time, “Hey it’s great that you have a vision for NZ and that you have been believing for it, but it is time to grow up. It is time to pray and prophesy into the greater powers over the globe, both naturally and spiritually. It is time to focus not just on NZ but on the nations of the world. But be even more strategic than that, it is time to pray for those nations that have much influence over others as the impacts and outcomes of your prayer will go further than you can imagine.
This is an example of how my perspective limited God. This is a nutshell is essentially the process and how God led me into a more mature perspective of prayer, the importance of prayer for the nations, and gave me a heart for it. It was something that took years! Whether you are a part of a big or a little nation like New Zealand this does not need to affect the impact your prayers and your testimony, your discipleship can have on the nations of the world. As born again Bible believers we are first and foremost citizens of heaven and we are seated in heavenly places and we can transcend beyond the place where we may be physically situated.
This is why we talk about God Band Prayer Jamming. The prayers transcend beyond our known limitations.
GODS WORD, GODS HEART FOR THE NATIONS
So when you get visions, how do you know they are from God? Let’s see if what I have shared lines up with His word, His heart.
Isaiah 56:7 Even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer: their burnt offerings and their sacrifices shall be accepted upon mine altar; for mine house shall be called an house of prayer for all people.
Psalm 2: 8 Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession
Psa 27: 6 And now shall mine head be lifted up above mine enemies round about me: therefore will I offer in his tabernacle sacrifices of joy; I will sing, yea, I will sing praises unto the Lord.
Psa 48: The joy of the whole earth
Psa 95: 1 O come, let us sing unto the Lord: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation.
Psa 113:9 He maketh the barren woman to keep house, and to be a joyful mother of children. Praise ye the Lord.
Nehemiah 8:10 Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the Lord is your strength.
1 Chron 15: 25 So David, and the elders of Israel, and the captains over thousands, went to bring up the ark of the covenant of the Lord out of the house of Obededom with joy.
1 Chron 29:9 Then the people rejoiced, for that they offered willingly, because with perfect heart they offered willingly to the Lord: and David the king also rejoiced with great joy.
Ezra 6:22 And kept the feast of unleavened bread seven days with joy: for the Lord had made them joyful, and turned the heart of the king of Assyria unto them, to strengthen their hands in the work of the house of God, the God of Israel.
Isa 61:10 I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels.
New Testament church a place of Joy
Matthew 16:19 “And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”"
Romans 14:17 “For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit”
Luke 15: 7 I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.
Luke 15: 10 Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.
Romans 4: 17 (As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations,) before him whom he believed, even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were. 18 Who against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations, according to that which was spoken, So shall thy seed be. 19 And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sarah's womb: 20 He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; 21 And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform. 22 And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness. 23 Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was imputed to him; 24 But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead; 25 Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification.
Rev 21:24 glory of nations
B.I.D
Are you accessing our 5 nations we pray for each week?
Are you actioning it
Do you have a people group to pray for?