1 Timothy 2:1-4 “Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, (2) for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. (3) For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, (4) who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”
In the above quoted passage of scripture the Holy Spirit exhorts the church to pray for heads of state and all those who are in authority. One of the main roles that the church is required to fulfil with the regards to the governments of the nations is to pray for them, for we must not forget that they are God’s ministers. One of the reasons we pray for those in authority is because of our adversary the devil. Our Lord Jesus gave us some insight into this concept when He spoke to Peter, for you will recall the incident when Jesus informed him of Satan’s request to sift Peter as wheat, and our Lord’s response that He had prayed for Peter so that his faith would not fail during his time of testing. Clearly if the Lord had not prayed for Peter, his faith would have failed and Satan would have succeeded in hindering Peter’s walk with the Lord (Luke 22:31-32). And so in a similar manner Satan very often asks permission to sift a nation’s leaders as wheat, and it is only the prayers of the saints that can prevent them from succumbing to the devil’s devices. Obviously the saints should pray for the governments of the nations where God has placed them. So what specifically should the church pray for when they pray for their governments? The above passage of scripture teaches the church to pray for their nations to be governed in a manner that enables its citizens to lead quiet and peaceable lives, and more specifically that the saints are able to live godly lifestyles in those nations, which clearly implies that the church is to pray that there are no restrictions placed on the word of God being proclaimed in those nations either. I also want to draw your attention to the fact that the above passage of scripture teaches the church to pray for “all” who are in authority, which would include all branches of a nation’s government. Too often the church prays for one part of their nation’s government to the exclusion of other branches that are just as important in the governance of their nations. For example if we were to look at the nation of the USA, that would mean that the saints in that nation should pray for all their authorities at a national level, i.e. the executive, legislative and judicial branches of their government. And at a local level the saints in the USA should pray for the authorities of the states, counties and cities, etc, where God has placed them.
Michael E.B. Maher
留言