The Potential of Prayer (4)

The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. James 5.16

What can the righteous do?
In the eleventh psalm David responds to a counselor who advises him, in the face of some enemy threat, to head for the high ground, get out of town, beat a path of retreat.

In this adviser’s view of the situation, David did not have sufficient power to prevail against his opponent, so his best course of action was to retreat and live to fight another day (Ps. 11.1-3).

But David had a better idea for what the righteous person can do in such times: “In the LORDI put my trust…” (v. 1.). What did he mean by that? “The LORDis in His holy temple, the LORD’s throne is in heaven; His eyes behold, His eyelids test the sons of men” (v. 4). David reminded his friend that God knew all about his situation, and David was determined to hasten to His presence and bring this potentially anxiety-producing situation to the Lord.

In a time when power was lacking, David determined to go to God in prayer. What, exactly, was David expecting from such prayers?

To be concise, he was expecting God to do something by showing him what he should do.

God knows, and God tests
David’s situation would not have escaped God’s notice: “His eyes behold, His eyelids test the sons of men” (v. 4). Nothing sneaks up on God; nothing takes Him by surprise. Nothing arises in our lives which catches Him off guard or is too great for Him to handle. We may not have power – whether of wisdom, skill, or inner strength – to prevail in the face of whatever is threatening us, but God does. And He Who loves us and sent His Son for our salvation, and Who hears and answers our prayers, sees what we’re going through, and is ready to exercise power wherever we are lacking in it.

But God also uses trials like this to test us: “The LORDtests the righteous…” (v. 5). His testing is not the pass/fail sort. It’s more like a blacksmith testing the malleability of his iron by thrusting it into the fire and banging it with a hammer against an anvil. He’s not trying to destroy that piece of metal, but to fashion it into something useful, solid, and good.

But in order to accomplish that, he needs to turn up the heat and bring on the pressure.

Every test or trial that comes our way, every matter or situation that might cause us to become anxious, is simply one of God’s ways of strengthening our souls. If we flee from such situations – refuse to face or deal with them, rather than flee to God – then our souls will not grow stronger but will become weak and fearful and anxious. When God “turns up the heat” and “brings the hammer down” on us, our response must not be one of avoidance, but of seeking Him in prayer. If we will pray, the heat may not decrease, and the hammering may not subside, but we will grow strong through grace within, so that, through the power of prayer, we may be at peace over our circumstances, rather than anxious and helpless under them.

Unleashing power
David believed that God could handle his situation. Yes, it might get worse before it gets better, but a righteous man, looking to the righteous God, wants only to discover a righteous work to do. Then he can follow God’s Word and know the indwelling power of His Spirit. In verse 7 David wrote, “For the LORDis righteous; He loves righteousness; the upright shall behold His face” (my translation). In times of trial we should not be looking for some way of avoiding whatever threatens us, but of engaging it with an appropriate work of grace-born righteousness. The “face” of God refers to the Spirit and Word of God (cf. Ezek. 39.29; Ps. 119.135), as well as His presence, favor, and strength. David resolved to seek God in His Word, and in the indwelling strength of His Spirit, so that he might learn something holy and righteous and good to do in light of the danger that threatened him, knowing that the goodness of the Lord can overcome every evil (Rom. 12.21).

In so acting, David expected that God would take care of the rest: “But the wicked and the one who loves violence His soul hates. Upon the wicked He will rain coals; fire and brimstone and a burning wind

shall bethe portion of their cup” (vv. 5, 6). David perhaps didn’t expect these things literally – this is poetry, after all – or perhaps not at this time. But he did believe that if he stood his ground, took his case before the Lord – with supplication and thanksgiving – and waited on Him to show His face and make known His will, whatever David was shown to do would unleash the power of God in this situation, overcome the evil, and make David stronger and more useful in His Kingdom.

James reminds us that the prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. Prayer should be a context in which we seek the power of God, and the power of God is the power to overcome evil, not merely to avoid or escape it. You may have to visit the Lord’s throne a few times and be prepared to linger there, listening and waiting and supplicating and giving thanks. But in His way and time, the Lord will show you the righteous way to overcome whatever is threatening your peace, and grant you the power to do so.

Prayer gives us power to act according to the will of God, and when we act, God’s power meets us and carries us through.

For reflection
1.  How should we expect the power of God to flow through us in any situation? Look at John 7.37-39 and Acts 1.8. How do these passages guide your thinking?

2.  Is this power really sufficient to help us overcome evil with good? Explain.

3.  What can keep us from realizing this kind of power?

Next steps: - Preparation: God gives us power to live for Him in our Personal Mission Fields. Click here to watch a brief video about how you can identify and begin seeing God’s power at work in you in your Personal Mission Field.

T. M. Moore
Each of our “next steps” exercises is tied into goals and disciplines involved in working your Personal Mission Field. If you have not yet identified your Personal Mission Field, watch the brief video showing you how to get started right away (click here). Learn how to work your Personal Mission Field by finding a friend and signing-up for our Mission Partners Outreach.

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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.