Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak.Today, we will focus v.18b, where Paul emphasizes the absolute necessity of "making supplication for all the saints." Simply put, spiritual warfare is a corporate endeavor.
The first thing we note is the preface Paul attaches, namely the vital importance of "keeping alert with all perseverance" when it comes to praying for our fellow brothers and sisters who have been enlisted into this ferocious battle.
It would seem that the reason these words were inspired is because of our natural tendency to focus our prayers and supplications on ourselves and our own trials and circumstances.
In the previous sentence, we are told we must be praying in the Spirit at "all" times, with "all" prayer and supplication. Certainly "all" times and "all kinds" of prayers* extends beyond our own lives and cares into the concentric circles of the lives of those around us, and even further into the lives of others in our congregation.
And so, "to this end", that is, praying for our fellow brothers and sisters in our midst, we must be on guard and intentional. Furthermore, we must cultivate perseverance in this important spiritual discipline of praying for others.
- What are some ways we can corporately and practically "keep alert" when it comes to praying for our fellow soldiers?
Perhaps one of the best ways is simply to regularly attend and participate in the weekly corporate prayer meeting at our local church, where individualism is virtually impossible.
Another great opportunity is to intentionally plan to gather with other Christians to pray with and for them. A great start is in making it a priority to be part of one of the community groups, where an integral part of 'community' is praying for one another. Of course this can play itself out in regular gatherings with other Christians throughout the week.
A great practice I and my family have sought to employ is to make sure that before our guests leave, we ask them how we can be praying for them....and then pray for them right then and there.
- And so, when you get together with other Christians, make time to talk about how you can pray for each other. Just as importantly, make time to actually pray for one another (perhaps one of the greatest sins in cultural Christianity is the lie when we flippantly tell others, "I'm praying for you" when we're not or don't).
Praying for others often requires being with others. How can others be accurately praying for me if they don't know how they can be praying for me?
When we look at the various components of the Christian's 'complete' armor, we notice that there is not any armor for our backs that Paul lists. Perhaps that is why he emphasizes at the end of this section the vital necessity of being together, of 'having each other's back.'
When the Romans would assemble their soldiers for war, their armor was designed ultimately to be used as a company. The 'interlocking' shield of the soldier was not only for his own protection, but was designed to protect his comrades on his right and his left as well. They were trained to work in unison to prevent the enemy from breaching their lines and forcing hand to hand combat, something which would drastically impair their odds of victory. As effective predators seek to isolate their prey from the herd, so Satan works diligently to keep Christians isolated from the church, and especially church prayer meetings.
Brothers and sisters, we actually need one another. We actually need to be with one another. And we actually need to be praying together** and for one another.
Let me encourage you all to make it a priority to come out to the weekly prayer meetings. Come, and let us know how we can be praying for you as your fellow-soldiers in Christ. Come, and pray for those around you. Come, join us as we pray for a different country and church every week. You'll be surprised how often you find yourself praying for others during the week (conversely, you'll be surprised how rarely you pray for others you don't see regularly).
I know it is costly to do so. But I would posit for your consideration just how costly it is to not do so.
Grace Community, may the world see that we as Christ's people are a praying people!
In Christ, and for His great glory to the ends of the earth, through the church,
pastor ryan
* The Greek can also by translated this way ("all kinds" of prayers...). One kind of prayer might be for ourselves; another for their close associations; yet others for people such as Paul (v.19).
** Westerns often 'individualize' Ephesians 6. But all the verbs are plural, and so Paul has in view here a church praying these kinds of things together.
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