OPEN HEAVENS DEVOTIONAL - SUNDAY - 06/07/2014 - PRAYER ATTRACTS AUTHORITY BY PASTOR E.A. ADEBOYE

PRAYER ATTRACTS AUTHORITY

MEMORISE

For he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.

Matthew 7:29

READ

Acts 4:23-31

23 And being let go, they went to their own company, and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said unto them.

24 And when they heard that, they lifted up their voice to God with one accord, and said, Lord, thou art God, which hast made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all that in them is:

25 Who by the mouth of thy servant David hast said, Why did the heathen rage, and the people imagine vain things?

26 The kings of the earth stood up, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord, and against his Christ.

27 For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together,

28 For to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done.

29 And now, Lord, behold their threatenings: and grant unto thy servants, that with all boldness they may speak thy word,

30 By stretching forth thine hand to heal; and that signs and wonders may be done by the name of thy holy child Jesus.

31 And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness.

MESSAGE

Besides providing an avenue for you to report everything that threatens your peace and joy, prayer brings the fullness of the Spirit. We see this demonstrated in Acts 4:31:

“And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness.”

The Holy Spirit is ever near those who call upon God in truth, while He is distant from those who call upon Him in pretence or who hardly pray. In James 4:8, we are enjoined to draw near to God. How? One way to do this is by praying. When you pray, you provoke the Holy Spirit to come closer to help you. If you fail to pray, you keep Him at bay. If you pray intensely and effectively enough, He will descend upon you and even those around you. In Acts 2:1-4, one hundred and twenty believers were together praying in the upper room when the Holy Spirit descended during the feast of Pentecost and they were all baptized with the Holy Spirit. In Acts 4:23-33, in the face of serious threats from the authorities, the church council members prayed and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. If you can pray, the Holy Spirit will come to fill the space within you and you will be full of the Spirit. You can be filled with the Holy Spirit as often as you require Him to fill you. If you are always full of the Spirit, you will be empowered to live the life of the Spirit.

Prayer also brings boldness to declare God’s Word. There is a link connecting these variables: prayer, the word and boldness. If you tarry in the place of prayer, when you declare the word, it will be done with authority. This was one feature that was commonly seen in the ministry of Jesus Christ (Matthew 7:28-29). How do you teach or preach today? If it is plastic, powerless and void of the backing of the Spirit, you are teaching like the scribes and not like Jesus. Prayer makes the difference in the ministry of the word. The one who preaches or teaches with conviction has obviously paid the price in the place of prayer. How prayerful are you? How impactful are you? If you are still shy to preach salvation to sinners, it is most likely you are not praying enough. Pray without ceasing from today!

ACTION POINT

Father, from today, let your words that I speak be backed up with your power.

  

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR

Numbers 27:12-29:40;

Psalm 148