“Pray Also for Me” (Part 1 of 2)

Ephesians chapter 6. The apostle Paul talks about the prayer for each of us as believers. He encourages us to pray for one another, but he also acknowledges his own personal need for prayer.

He asked people to pray for him today on Truth for Life. Alistair Begg reminds us that none of us ever outgrows our need for prayer. While we have reached verses 19 and 20. They read as follows.

Paul has so words prayer and then he says, 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 at one of the earliest pictures that we have in the acts of the apostles off Paul following his conversion on the road to Damascus is when Ananias is instructed by God to go and encounter this fellow Saul of Tarsus.

You will recall, in acts nine that Ananias was understandably uncomfortable at the prospect.

Given all that he knew about Saul of Tarsus. Breathing out murderous threats and slaughters, and so on and committed to imprisoning at least those who were the followers of Jesus, but his instructions were clear goals said the Lord to a street called straight, and at the house of Judas look for a man of Tarsus named Saul for behold, he is praying. So the very first picture that we have of Paul in response to his conversion, is Saul of Tarsus of prayer. Now here he is towards the end of his Christian pilgrimage, and he is aware of his need of the prayers of the people who support him and to love I think is important just to acknowledge that that he has not if you like. As a result of the effectiveness of his ministry as a result of their peculiar influence of his pen.

As a result of the many people that he's had occasion to speak to concerning the kingdom and those of kings and princes and rulers in all kinds of people. Some of them have been ushered into the kingdom.

It's not that he is now has a hasn't been some kind of plateau where he says, you know, I've pretty well got this down now. He says you folks need to be praying all the time for all the saints with all perseverance with all kinds of prayers and also for me sometimes as those who apparently need to prayer the least who actually need it the most. Spurgeon was arguably the most effective preacher in the Western world in Victorian England. The crowds that came in the members of Parliament became an even the royal family that came to hear him preach were quite dramatic and one occasion someone said to how is it Charles that you account for the amazing influence of your ministry and answered in one phrase he said my people pray for me.

So what I want us to notice. First of all, is simply this, that although we refer to Paul as the mighty apostle and mighty apostle. He was the fact is, he was not a superhero.

In fact if he was a super anything out of his own mouth. He referred to himself as a supercenter. Remember when he says to Timothy that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners and he says I'm the top of that list, of whom I am foremost I am the chief of sinners.

In chapter 3 earlier in this letter. Here he is referred to himself as the least of all the saints that this is quite encouraging.

Isn't it inasmuch as when he writes in his letter to the church at Rome he says do not think of yourself more highly than you ought to think. But think of yourself with sober judgment. According to the measure of grace that God has given you so actually what he's telling others to do is doing himself and he realizes that it is one thing for them to say now you folks need to be praying and quite another for him to say and I desperately need you to pray for me to suggest to just two things under this heading for subaltern notice his vulnerability, his vulnerability he has not written to them and said you do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but rather he said we do not wrestle against flesh and blood. He is clearly in many ways at the front of the parade and as a result of that he is keenly aware of the insinuations and the accusations of the enemy. He is able to write to Timothy about many of the things that will be a concern to Timothy in his pastoral ministry out of the awareness that he has had of similar circumstances. So for example, his vulnerability is made clear in his awareness of the wholesale desertion to which he refers when he writes to Timothy. He says to them all who are in Asia have turned away from me, even when we allow for hyperbole. There was a massive decline is vulnerable to that people deserted your leader. You don't want people to desert you. If you are leading a charge you don't want the numbers to diminish.

You want them to increase. Now when he writes to Timothy says there's going to come a time when people will not put up with sound doctrine, but they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say with their itching ears want to hear.

They will turn away from the truth and it will turn aside to these things and he says you need to know that and I can tell you about it because I've experienced it. In other was he not writing to them out of a peculiar sense of triumph out of the great record of the honest sealed victory. Now he was vulnerable to desertion.

He was also vulnerable to price to pry and this was made clear to them on a number of occasions throughout his ministry and nowhere more obviously so than friend. He asked the Lord on three occasions to remove from him what he referred to as a form in his flesh. You remember that you can read of it in second Corinthians 12 what is he saying that there while he says to keep me from becoming conceited. Well, how, why would he become conceited, but because he was vulnerable to being conceited if you think about his background before his conversion and he had a stellar background, the kind of pedigree that he enjoyed the kind of education that he had pursued the kind of influence that he again and so you can see how easy it would be for him in the journey of his life to revert to that to default to that God knows that his father loves him so much that in order to prevent him becoming absolutely useless as a result of a fathead there was given me a thorn in the flesh. What he refers to as a messenger of Satan to harass me and then he finishes the verse as he began to keep me from becoming conceited. Pray also for me vulnerable to the desertion vulnerable to pry vulnerable to depression so I don't know what I think you're overstating things well, you're sensible.

You can read the Bible just as clearly as I can and I when you read, for example, as he begins his letter to the Corinthians is second letter to the Corinthians. He's absolutely straightforward is it in verse eight of two Corinthians 1. He says we do not want you to be unaware, brothers of the affliction we experienced in Asia for we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death, and yet he says now we believe that we had this experience of coming to the end of our tether that we might learn to trust not in ourselves but in God and then he says, and you also must help us by prayer, so that Manny will give thanks on our behalf for the blessing granted ours through the prayers of many is not a superhero NSN hammers and leave it to me. I have gifts now through the prayers of the man he many will give thanks and also for me. He says vulnerable and secondly humble.

I think there is a direct correlation between the vulnerability and the humility you see when we are self-assured, there's really no reason for us to pray. It is only when we are brought to an understanding of our need. It is only when the accusations of the evil one: to seek to unhinge as an debilitated's that we end up going back to God what is it mean that this thorn was a messenger of Satan. Well, it means at least this that that which God had brought into Paul's life to keep him from becoming conceited. In other words, it was a bad thing that was brought into his life for good reason, and was then employed by the evil one, presumably to come to Paul and say you know why doesn't God answer your prayers. Why if you are as useful as you are. Why are you experiencing these things.

Why is why is everything not just running smoothly for you if you really believe this God that you said those are the kind of things that the evil one sets you find that in your own pilgrimage so his request for prayer is not unique to this we see it as we saw the end of the getting of the second Corinthians 1 when he writes Colossians. He says the same thing continue steadfast in prayer and at the same time, pray for us. Second Thessalonians, pray for us that the word of the Lord may go forward, unhindered, how is it that the word of the Lord will go forward, unhindered, pray for us that the word of the Lord may go forward, unhindered the word of the Lord is going forward. This is the word of the Lord hears the word of the Lord, thanks be to God for his word.

How does it go forward, unhindered as a result of prayer.

Prayer seekers. The battle is not against flesh and blood, but against spiritual with wickedness in the heavenly places is not an intellectual battle now if then he is who he is not a superhero, but we have reason to consider is vulnerability in this humility letter is notice. Secondly, that his request for prayer is specific is specific isn't just a generalization. Nursing just pray for me, but he's asking that they will pray in a particular way when we noted his prayers. We realize that he wasn't preoccupied with many of the things that are often part and parcel of our prayers and once again here's the case, and also for me, it doesn't say that I might get out of this imprisonment. That would've been relatively natural. I think many of us would've put that right on the top of our list, saying, you know, after all, I presumably can be far more effective if I'm out of here. Therefore, let us pray to this end know he doesn't pray for liberation. He prays for effectiveness in proclamation the strength required wasn't just for his own personal confrontation with the evil one, but actually what he's focused on is the evangelistic ministry of the gospel that he wants to make sure that in the context in which he finds himself he will have the privilege of doing that for which he is been set apart to see people rescued from the devil's dominion that the people will actually be transformed now when he is explaining before one of the kings in acts chapter 26 about what it was that God had planned for him to do acts 26 is before Agrippa and is worth rereading these chapters, when he gives his defense before Caesar and before Felix and Priscilla before Agrippa and so on.

But in this context, he explains that he had been arrested by Jesus is aware on the Damascus Road and the word of the risen Jesus to them was as follows rise. This is acts 26 verse 16 rise and stand upon your feet. For I have appeared to you for this purpose to appoint you as a servant and witness to the things in which you have seen me and to those in which I will appear to you, delivering you from your people. And from the Gentiles, to whom I am sending you to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me that is quite a calling when you say and so now in this context he asked specifically that words may be given me in opening my mouth boldly note the King James version uses an old word there, but it's a good work that utterance may be given me.

I asked if that would helpful because it sort of distinguishes between simply say I need words because he was good with words mean asking for an increase in his vocabulary, presumably not asking to broaden his base of eloquence know he's asking for utterance is asking for word the word to be given him. We sometimes as a pastoral team.

Talk about how with the passage of time, it is relatively easy to say something but the real question is do you have something to say and what he's saying here is you pray for me that I may have something to say, that I may have utterance essentially that word utterance on the day of Pentecost when utterance was given them in the spoke in various tongues.

In other words, it was an expression of the direct work of the Holy Spirit.

That's what he saying here and I think if you considered in terms. For example, of first Corinthians 2. It may well ring with clarity when I came to you. He says, was in weakness, fear and trembling my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom. Here we go, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.

That's what he's asking for is saying I want you to pray for me so that when words are given me that I that my mouth is open freely to proclaim them that it might actually have this impact the same thing that he's able to say when he writes of the Thessalonians, and he reminds them he says. And when I came in, declare to you the gospel it came to you not only in word but also in power and in the Holy Spirit. I've sent you many many times that there is a distinct difference between simply hearing the voice of a mere man and hearing the voice of God.

I don't mean in some peculiar mystical way but in the way in which it happens. I know because it happens to me to that the word of God comes home with such clarity and such insight and often such pain and such a revelation that you're saying to yourself this is God's very word.

This is not only the Bible as it is explained but this is the spirit of God bringing it home to my heart. Now it is for that the Pope raise and it is forbade that every teacher of the Bible are to long. I certainly do. The second thing he asked for his boldness, let let me let me finish with this thought, why does he need words to whom is he planning on speaking after all is good. I can a limited congregation at this point doesn't yes but it doesn't matter to he wants them to pray so that those whom he encounters the soldiers the visitors the various contacts may be confronted by the mystery of the gospel to which we will come later and most helpfully acts ends with the record of this and again I commend to you. These closing chapters of acts, Luke, the they will encourage you and strengthen you.

Paul is in Rome and he is in capacity did as a result of his chains and he is entertaining.

Some who wanted to see him. The leaders of the Jews. They wanted to hear what he had to say in verse 23 of acts 28 when they had appointed a day for him.

They came to him at his lodging in greater numbers. From morning till evening he expounded to them, testifying to the kingdom of God and trying to convince them about Jesus both from the law of Moses and from the prophets. Pray for me, that words may be given me that when I open my mouth. I may declare it freely what you want to say to these Jewish brothers and sisters that you have on going to show them from the Old Testament that the Messiah had to suffer and die. I'm going to show them that the prophets told of this. I'm going to show them that Moses was a forerunner to this and some were convinced by what he said but others disbelieved and so he lived there this and how accents he lived there two whole years at his own expense, and welcomed all who came to him proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance. One of the fascinating characters in that season must surely be an SMS. The runaway slave because remember, an SMS runaway from Philemon and did not realize that he was running away from one master to run straight into the arms of the master and Paul when he writes to Philemon, asking him to take an SMS by no longer is useless but is peculiarly useful in keeping with his name.

What is he say he says I want you to take an SMS whose father I became in my imprisonment, whose father I became in my imprisonment. How was it that an SMS was converted as a result of the prayers of the people who undergirded the ministry in the mouth of Paul who declared the kingdom in such a way that men and women might understand some disregard and others believe he did it creatively. When something he did it consistently. And as we will see later on he did it boldly was the last time US someone to pray for you all of us need to be humble enough to ask for prayer.

This is Truth for Life message from Alastair Bragg.

Does it surprise you to learn that even the apostle Paul relied on the prayers of others. The truth is, all of us need prayer. As believers were in a spiritual battle against a very real enemy we live in a world that often confuses good and evil.

Satan knows we don't perceive him as a threat were not likely to ask for God's help in his guidance.

So to help you grasp both the danger the devil poses and the refuge that's available in Christ. We want to invite you to request a book called our ancient foe.

This is an enlightening practical book, especially in today's culture where the lines between good and evil seem increasingly blurred.

The book our ancient foe is a must-have for every believer, you can request your copy today when you tap the book image in the app call us at 888-588-7884 Bob Lapine hope you enjoy your weekend and are able to worship together with your local church. Join us on Monday as we discover what Paul asked for that seems to be in short supply, even in our day. The Bible teaching of Alastair Bragg is furnished by Truth for Life with learning is looking