Jonathan Edwards on Prayer

You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. 1 John 4.4

Distinguishing Marks
Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758)
“So we may safely determine, from what the apostle says, that the spirit that is at work amongst a people, after such a manner, as to lessen men’s esteem of the pleasures, profits, and honours of the world, and to take off their hearts from an eager pursuit after these things; and to engage them in a deep concern about a future state and eternal happiness which the gospel reveals – and puts them upon earnestly seeking the kingdom of God and his righteousness; and the spirit that convinces them of the dreadfulness of sin, and the guilt it brings, and the misery to which it exposes; must needs be the Spirit of God.”

People who confess Jesus as Savior and Lord, and are born again into the Kingdom of God, embark on a new course in life. Old things pass away; all things have become new. As they learn Jesus (Eph. 4.17-24), the old priorities of life in the kingdom of darkness give way to the new values and objectives of the Kingdom of God. People take stock of their commitments, priorities, and values; and they begin to seek the Kingdom and righteousness of God in every area of their lives. They get on the growth curve with Jesus, and take up the challenge of being witnesses for Christ. They still have to make a living, of course, and the material benefits of contemporary life are not entirely out of bounds. What changes, rather, is the mindset – a desire now to have more of Christ, and less of the world; more of His Spirit, and less of their selfish will; more of the promises of God, and less of the fleeting prospects of our materialistic age; more time for Jesus and His Kingdom, at the expense of time devoted to things which cannot last. This is what we seek when we pray to the Lord for revival, and when we see such evidences coming to pass, we can be sure that revival is upon us.

In your preaching and teaching, do you hold out such life-change, and urge the people of God to pursue it?

An Humble Attempt
If you have not read Edwards’ book on praying for revival, I urge you to do so. We’ll send it to you in a free PDF which you can print or download to your e-reader. Just email me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.and request Jonathan Edwards’ An Humble Attempt.

Jonathan Edwards on Prayer
We have put together our 8-week series of Jonathan Edwards on prayer into a 28-day morning and evening meditation entitled, Give Him No Rest. To each of these 56 meditations we have added a prayer prompt, to guide you in taking the words of Scripture and Edwards to heart. This is an excellent resource for personal use, family devotions, or a staff-and-church-leaders study in prayer. And it’s free. For your copy of Give Him No Rest: Jonathan Edwards on Prayer, simply send me an email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

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Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.All quotations are from Jonathan Edwards, Distinguishing Marks of a Work of the Spirit of God, in Edward Hickman, ed. The Works of Jonathan Edwards(Edinburgh: The Banner of Truth Trust, 1834, 1995), Vol. Two, pp. 257ff.